From a distance it looked like a white dog running around having fun on the Trentham Memorial Park playing fields, but closer examination revealed a small and very clever machine.

The machine is a robot that paints the white lines on our sports fields. This week the markings for track and field events have been painted, and throughout the year, as each sports season starts, their respective playing field layouts will be painted.

The robot paints the lines at around one metre per second, with a position accuracy to 1-2cm. A soccer field can be painted in about 20 minutes. This is GPS in action.

I was wondering how the machine gets programmed. It was surprisingly simple. Because sport field line markings are set according to the rules of each game, 50 pre-installed templates cover almost every requirement. Using a tablet, the technician precisely positions the required template over the live GPS location map and saves it to the machine. Every time after that, it’s just press the “go” button, and the lines are marked on the field. The technician stays with the machine at all times it is deployed.

Mexted Sports Turf looks after the playing fields in Upper Hutt on behalf of the Council, and more broadly specialises in sports turf management, from drainage and irrigation right through to maintaining the playing surface – and the white lines on top!

Thanks to Mexted Sports Turf’s operator, Wade Kernachan, for his help putting this article together. 

A “thank you” to Stu for sending this article to The Upper Hutt Connection.

12/10/26