An Introduction to the Alpha Scanning System

This article introduces the Alpha Scanning System, which can be used by clubs to manage tyre usage by competitors. 

There are three main components of Alpha’s tyre scanning system:

1.    Online database – this holds a record of all tyres scanned across all clubs using the Alpha scanners.  It also holds basic details of all events and entries to those events.  Events and entries are only accessible by authorised personnel of a particular club (it is not possible to see events and entries from another club), however it is possible to view tyres that were scanned at a different club.

2.    Laptop application – this is installed on a laptop at the venue, and is used by the scrutineers to view the status of competitors (e.g. those who have not yet been scanned) and to make any on-the-day changes, for example adding a late entry, or changing a driver’s race number.  The laptop also holds a local copy of the tyre data, so that the scanning system can run without a direct internet connection to the on-line database.

3.    Scanners – these connect to the laptop application via a local wifi connection to synchronize the tyre data, and are used to both register competitor’s tyres and to view the status and history of tyres.  Once the scanner has been synchronized with the laptop’s database, it can run without a direct wifi connection to the laptop, with any tyre information stored on the scanner until the connection to the laptop is restored, at which point it will re-synchronize itself automatically.

For the system to work you will need:

• a Laptop to run the application on
• a handheld scanner to scan the tyres
• a Local wireless network with a Windows Network Profile set to Private  – this is required so that the scanners can communicate with the laptop. If you do not have a private network connection Windows will block the connection to the scanners. An orange warning banner will be displayed in the application warning you of this with a button to fix it. 

Internet access is not essential when using the scanners to scan tyres. However it is required to set up the meeting on the laptop and to upload the tyre data to the online database at the end of the event. This can be done from home before leaving for the circuit, and once home at the end of the event.  

There are a number of options for providing a local WiFi network, ranging from a cheap wireless router - these can be operated stand-alone without an internet connection and start at around £20, to a wireless 4g device or a 4g WiFi router.  Please contact the Support Team if you need advice on which device.

When the application is started, a following screen is displayed.

The top section, “Recent events”, shows events that have already been set up.  Clicking on the event box opens the event.

The lower section, “Events to import” shows events that have been set up by the competition secretary, and are ready to be imported.

Clicking the Gear Icon will load the settings page. The import URL will be https://tyres.alphatiming.co.uk/ and each Club has their own unique Import Token. Please Contact the Support Team if you need this. 

On this page you can configure the tyre rules to use for your championship or series as well as some configuration of the items of equipment you will be scanning and their barcode formats.