Development and Preliminary Evaluation of an IoT Enabled Ultrasonic System for Volleyball Jump Measurement

Abstract

Objectives: To develop an Internet of Things (IoT) enabled ultrasonic system for volleyball attack and block jump measurement and to examine its preliminary measurement performance and expert-rated feasibility.

Materials and Methods: A research and development study was conducted at Universitas Tanjungpura and Yuso Kalbar Volleyball Academy, Indonesia. The study documentation identified 60 purposively selected novice volleyball athletes aged 15–20 years; available results described a five-athlete pilot and a 20-athlete field trial. Five experts evaluated the prototype. Sensor and manual measurements were summarized using descriptive statistics, relative errors, and reported Pearson correlations.

Results: In the pilot, mean reference and sensor readings were 300.4 and 296.8 cm, respectively, with a mean absolute difference of 3.6 cm and a reported mean relative error of 1.20%. In the field trial, mean IoT and manual values were 65.2 and 64.2 cm for attack jumps and 56.4 and 55.4 cm for block jumps. Reported relative errors were 1.56% and 1.81%, respectively. Pearson correlations were 0.999 and 0.997 (both p < .001). The reported overall expert score was 4.25/5. The relationship between pilot readings and displacement-based field outcomes was not documented.

Conclusions: The prototype showed promising preliminary feasibility and strong associations with manual measurements. Agreement, repeatability, and sensitivity to training-related change require further evaluation before the system can be considered interchangeable with reference methods or effective for improving athletic performance.