Pre-bout check
It’s good practice before the start of a bout to press the weapon tip
onto your shoe to ensure the unit is registering hits. It’s also good
to press the weapon tip to the opponent’s bell guard and confirm
no hit is registered.
Unlike wired fencing, you can’t use your ungloved hand to press
the tip and test for a score response. Hitmate detects your hand
the same as a guard, and does not register a hit. If you hold the
tip pressed too long, Hitmate will switch itself off.
Guard hit detection
The bell guard is earthed through the fencer’s body, and Hitmate
detects contact with earth when it registers a non-scoring hit to the
guard. Occasionally, a sweat-soaked tunic can be conductive to
earth. If Hitmate appears not to register hits after working well for
a period of time, consider whether the opponent’s tunic has
become affected by sweat.
Operational checks
If intermittent operation is suspected, it’s useful to have some
fail-proof tests available. With Hitmate and the Console switched
on, the first test is to press the épée tip on to any insulated surface,
such as your shoe, and confirm that a hit is registered.
Next, try pressing the tip to an electrical ground, such as the
metalwork of a radiator or water tap. A touch to a good earth such
as this should never register on the console as a hit.
These two tests are all that is needed to confirm that Hitmate is
working correctly. The next two tests check the coupling between
Hitmate and the fencer’s body.
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Summary of Contents for Epee
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