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Chips

Purpose

Manage chip-to-bib assignments so incoming chip reads can be matched to the correct athlete during running and cross country meets.

When to Use This Page

Use Chips when:

  • your timing system sends chip IDs instead of bib numbers
  • you need to import a chip map before race day
  • a test read shows No Bib
  • a chip was swapped, mistyped, or reused and needs correction

If your workflow already provides bib numbers directly, such as many FinishLynx track workflows, this page may be less important.

Prerequisites

  • A running or cross country meet is already created.
  • Athletes already have bib numbers assigned.
  • Your timing workflow expects chip-to-bib matching.

How Chips Work in 2Timer

Each chip record links:

  • Chip ID: the value read from the transponder or tag
  • Bib #: the bib number 2Timer should treat as that chip’s owner

When a connector receives a chip read, 2Timer uses the chip map to find the bib number and then applies the read to the correct athlete entry.

If a chip is not mapped, the read can appear with a status such as No Bib on the Reads page.

The Chips Page

Open Chips from the meet navigation.

Use this page to:

  • load many chip assignments from a file
  • add a single chip quickly
  • search by chip ID or bib number
  • edit chip IDs inline
  • edit bib assignments inline
  • delete selected chip rows in bulk

The page also shows the linked athlete when the bib assignment matches an athlete record.

Common Workflows

Import chip assignments from a file

  1. Open Chips and click Import from file… (or start Chip assignments from the Import page).
  2. Choose the bib-to-chip file from your chip vendor or reader software (.csv, .txt, or .json).
  3. Check What we found, then go to Review.
  4. Review shows what will be created, what will be updated to a different bib, and what is already the same. Rows that repeat a chip are set aside and explained; the first row for each chip wins.
  5. Press Import. Nothing is saved until you do, and the import refuses and re-checks if the meet’s chips changed while you were reviewing.

Use this path when your timer gives you a spreadsheet or text export of bib-to-chip assignments before the race.

Quick add one chip

  1. Open Chips.
  2. Click Quick Add.
  3. Enter the Chip ID.
  4. Enter the Bib #.
  5. Press Enter to save.

If the chip already exists, 2Timer updates the bib assignment instead of creating a duplicate chip row.

Fix a bad assignment

  1. Search for the chip ID or bib number.
  2. Edit the Chip ID or Bib # inline in the table.
  3. Re-test with a sample read if the issue happened during setup.

This is the fastest fix when a chip was typed wrong, moved to another athlete, or reused after a late bib change.

Recommended Race-Day Workflow

  1. Import or load the full chip map before testing readers.
  2. Confirm athletes already have the expected bib numbers.
  3. Trigger a small number of test reads.
  4. Check the Reads page for Used status instead of No Bib.
  5. Fix any missing or mismatched chip assignments before the start.

File Import Notes

  • 2Timer accepts chip import files through the Chip assignments import wizard, reached from the Chips page or the Import page.
  • Common chip-map CSV and text exports are supported.
  • The goal of the import is a clean list of chip_id -> bib_number mappings.
  • Re-loading a corrected file is often faster than fixing many rows manually.

If the file parses poorly, clean the source export first so the chip IDs and bib numbers are unambiguous.

Common Problems

Problem Likely Cause Fix
Read shows No Bib Chip is not mapped to any bib Add or import the chip assignment
Read goes to the wrong athlete Bib number was assigned to the wrong chip Edit the bib on the chip row
Athlete appears blank in chip table Bib is not assigned to an athlete record Check the athlete bib number
Duplicate-looking chip assignments Same physical chip was loaded more than once Search and clean the chip rows before race day
Test read still fails after mapping Marker or connector setup is wrong Check Markers and Reads

Verification Checklist

  • Every expected starter using chip timing has a bib number.
  • Every expected chip has a mapped bib number.
  • The chip table shows linked athletes where expected.
  • Test reads land as Used instead of No Bib.
  • Any late bib swaps are reflected in the chip table before the gun.

Related Pages

Metadata

  • Last Updated: 2026-04-18
  • Document Version: 0.1
  • Status: Active