Published: Tuesday, 26th January, 2010 9:22am

Peebles inventor could stop fights in ice hockey

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AN innovator from the Borders is in the running to scoop a top award for his unique design ice hockey puck.

Robert Jamieson, 62, of Peebles, is hoping to claim a business support package worth £20,000 after his invention, the Superpuck, was shortlisted for a national John Logie Baird Award.

Serial inventor Robert came up with the idea for the Superpuck after a holiday to Slovakia, where ice hockey is the national game.

He said: "Ice hockey is a thrilling sport but unfortunately the speed of the game makes it very difficult for the referee and goal judge - as well as the players and viewers - to keep up. This causes a lot of disputes and there are often questions about the validity of goals. It got me thinking!

"In motorsport a small transponder, fitted to the racing car, is used to give accurate times for laps around the track - to within a thousandth of a second. It struck me that this method would work perfectly well in ice hockey so I set about modifying a standard puck to hold a small transponder."

When the transponder which is embedded in the Superpuck passes over a magnetic field - a loop fitted under the ice and around the goal-frame, it registers a hit on a rinkside decoder.

And Robert already has some big names backing his invention. Tag Heuer, the world's biggest sports timing company, are helping him to develop the technology behind the transponder and VEGUM, the world's largest producer of hockey pucks, will manufacture and distribute the Superpucks to all major Ice Hockey leagues across the world.

Isabell Majewsky, chief executive of awards organisers the GO Group, said: "The calibre of entries to this year's JLB Awards was particularly high so I would like to congratulate Robert for making it through to the next stage of the competition.

"The John Logie Baird Awards are about recognising and celebrating innovation talent in Scotland. Inventions such as the television, Chip and Pin and Penicillin all have roots here - proving that although we're a small nation, Scotland can make a significant impact to the UK and the world."