When you select the Hang Time and/or Jump Height channels for your Go Direct Force Plate, Graphical Analysis will provide a value for each selected channel when a student performs a jump.

• Hang time produces the time an individual is in the air, assuming they step on the force plate and then jump and land on the plate.
• Jump Height calculates the height of the jump based on the hang time and acceleration due to gravity.

We suggest changing the view of Graphical Analysis to add Meters, since a graph of these channels only provides a single data point. These channels can be used with or without data collection. There is a particular sequence of steps that are required to capture data:

1. Step onto the force plate. This can occur before or after data collection has started.
2. Jump and land on the force plate.
3. Step off the force plate.

Once this sequence is complete the values for hang time and/or jump height will be displayed on the meters.

If a student jumps twice, they need to step off the force plate. When they step back on the plate there is a slight delay and then the meters will revert to zero (“0”) and Graphical Analysis is ready to collect another set of data. After the second jump, the meter will display the results for that jump.

If you are having students jump without starting a data collection event, the process is similar:

1. Step onto the force plate.
2. Jump and land on the force plate.
3. Step off the force plate.
4. At this point, if a student steps back onto the force plate, the student must wait for the meters to zero so that the next event can be captured.

Using this approach, it is relatively easy to have students compare their hang time and jump heights, but they will need to document the results as the data are not saved.

The software uses a triggering weight of 200 N (45 pounds) to determine when someone is standing on the force plate. If the person jumping is less than 200 N, Graphical Analysis will not recognize the event.

Go Direct Force Plate Troubleshooting and FAQs

We have created two template files for your convenience. To use these files, download them to your computer/device, open Graphical Analysis and connect your Go Direct Force Plate, select the channels, then open the appropriate file.