[Retric]

F=MA Several very high speed and high resolution video cameras could collect all this information based on how glove, forearm, head, etc accelerate/rotate in real time.

You don’t need to process it all in real time. A blow by blow after round highlights real based on the most damaging blows could grow the sport by making it more interesting to watch lesser matches.

[teeray]

You could probably do it acoustically to some degree. A punch is going to violently displace some air proportionately to its impact.

Also, It might be undetectably negligible, but it would be an interesting experiment to see if a sufficiently sensitive thermal camera would be able to gather information on how much the air is getting compressed in advance of a punch.

[jfhdnfbrh]

Respectfully, I think the noise of the crowd + the fighters might make that a non starter :(

[Retric]

You bring up a good point, it definitely a difficult environment. However there’s a lot of techniques for isolating sounds in a noisy environment.

Getting clean audio from performers at concerts is only moderately challenging these days, with plenty of great examples to point to. So I wouldn’t be so quick to dismiss the idea.

[natmaka]

It's not only about power but about unbalancing the opponent in order to obtain a knock-down. A weak hit making him fall is better than a massive blow (especially on hitting a strong body area).

[hash872]

The discussion was about scoring. In order to score the fight, you do need to process it in somewhat real time. I don't think waiting a few days to find out who won is going to be acceptable to fans

[Retric]

Sure, which is why AI scoring is a more difficult problem than creating an automatic instant replay with approximate forces.

I’m still thinking minutes here which kind of blurs the long with real time scoring.

[harimau777]

There's a lot more to it than just measuring force. For an extreme example, imagine delivering the same punch (force, target, etc.) to Mike Tyson in his prime versus a 90 year old lady.

[Retric]

People who know how to absorbed and redirect a blow minimize how much their brain gets tossed about, but measuring peak acceleration of the skill is going to show how much someone’s brain got rattled. It’s a solid structure and your brain is inside

Also a you don’t see 90 year old grandmother’s in the ring. So it’s true someone with a larger head has an advantage here, but mechanical properties of tissues should be fairly similar between fighters and acceleration accounts for the mass of the head.

[shermantanktop]

Or apparently Tyson in his prime vs Tyson in his late 50s.