table tennis
Enable an AI agent to recognise a table-tennis activity, assess its playing conditions and competitive state, and determine valid next actions under the applicable rules.
Research draft, second pass
A second pass drafted this model: the structure a model of this thing needs, and what is known about it in the world. The line under this one says how the second half was obtained - researched against sources, or recalled without web access, in which case nothing here was read anywhere and every claim is a lead to verify. Unreviewed either way.
Researched by: Codex + Grok
Purpose and description
Enable an AI agent to recognise a table-tennis activity, assess its playing conditions and competitive state, and determine valid next actions under the applicable rules.
Table tennis is a racket sport in which two or four players hit a lightweight celluloid or plastic ball over a net on a rectangular table using rubber-faced rackets, with points scored when the opponent fails to make a legal return.
It can be Classify a proposed activity as table tennis or identify the declared variant that changes its treatment.; Assess whether the playing setup meets the requirements of the intended session or competition.; Track points, games, service order, receivers and table-end assignments.; Evaluate observed service and rally events against the applicable rules, flagging uncertain evidence.; Recommend continuation, replay, correction or referral to an authorised official when supported by the rules and evidence.; Configure table-tennis practice constraints and record whether the targeted serve, return or rally pattern was achieved..
Distinguishing features
The activity uses rackets to send a ball across a net between opposing portions of a table playing surface, rather than across a ground court.
Its declared service and return conventions use table bounces to determine valid play; merely hitting a ball over a net is insufficient identification.
It uses a ball rather than a shuttlecock, distinguishing it from badminton despite shared racket-and-net features.
The table is the rally playing surface rather than a support for a board, goals or mechanically controlled figures.
Labels such as ping-pong are resolved through actual equipment and play conventions, since a name alone does not establish whether standard table tennis or a variant is intended.
Scope
+ Identification of singles, doubles, practice and adapted table-tennis formats
+ Suitability of the table, net assembly, ball, rackets and surrounding playing space for the declared activity
+ Service, return, rally and doubles-turn obligations
+ Point, game and match state under an identified ruleset
+ Interruptions, disputed decisions and conditions for continuing play
- Player identity, medical history and general athletic development
- Equipment manufacture, inventory, ownership and maintenance history
- Venue construction, booking and facility management
- Tournament scheduling, rankings and qualification systems
- Governance and publication of official rules
- Other racket sports and table-based games with different play mechanics
Characteristics
- Activity format
- singles | doubles | practice drill | adapted format | other declared variant Determines participant roles, turn obligations and whether match scoring applies.
- Applicable rules
- Identified rules document and version, plus declared local modifications Provides the authority for judging equipment, service, scoring and interruptions.
- Table and net configuration
- Table length, width and height; net height; units recorded explicitly Allows comparison with requirements for the intended standard of play.
- Playing-space clearance
- Available clearance around each side and end of the table, in metres Helps assess whether the intended movement and retrieval demands are feasible.
- Equipment eligibility
- accepted | rejected | unchecked | disputed, separately for table, net, ball and rackets Distinguishes a usable recreational setup from one accepted for a particular competition.
- Rally phase
- awaiting service | service underway | rally underway | rally ended | decision pending Determines which actions and observations can affect the current point.
- Service and receiving order
- Current server, current receiver, doubles sequence where applicable, and assigned table ends Supports detection and correction of order or end-assignment errors.
- Competitive score
- Points by side, games won by side, match format and result status Determines service transitions, completion conditions and the next unit of play.
- Decision certainty
- confirmed | provisional | disputed | unobserved Prevents incomplete observations of contact, bounce or sequence from becoming unjustified rulings.
Also called
Where this came from
wikidata · CC0 1.0
Drafted structure
Bundle to layer to finding to question, as the second pass will find it: 6 bundles · 11 layers · 11 findings · 21 questions.
Table-tennis identity Establishes which form of table tennis is being modelled and which conventions govern it.
The activity name alone does not settle whether formal match rules, informal conventions or drill constraints apply.
Format and intent
Identifies the participant arrangement and whether play is competitive or instructional.
Declared form of play
Record singles, doubles or another explicitly described format, together with match or practice intent.
- Is this singles, doubles, an adapted format or a practice activity with a specified participant arrangement? definition
- Which departures from ordinary table-tennis play define this session, such as multiball feeding or cooperative rallying? boundary
Rules and variants
Connects the activity to a traceable ruleset and explicit modifications.
Governing play conventions
Record the authority and version of the rules used, separating adopted requirements from local agreements.
- Which rules document, edition or recorded agreement governs service, scoring and equipment eligibility? provenance
- Do modifications to the ball, racket, bounce conventions or scoring warrant treating this as a named variant? boundary
Playing setup Describes the table-tennis apparatus and the immediate conditions affecting play.
Recognition of a table-tennis setup is distinct from judging whether its surface, equipment and space support the intended activity.
Table, net and space
Captures measurable geometry and observable conditions of the playing area.
Surface and net readiness
Record table and net configuration, visible defects and movement clearance relevant to the declared format.
- What are the table dimensions, table height and net height, and how were they measured? measurement
- Do surface condition, net installation, lighting or surrounding obstructions require adjustment before this session can begin? action
Ball and rackets
Records the equipment characteristics needed to establish suitability and eligibility.
Equipment acceptance
Record the ball and racket characteristics required by the selected rules, together with inspection outcomes.
- Which ball and racket characteristics must be checked for this format, including racket coverings where relevant? definition
- What inspection, marking or approval evidence supports acceptance of the ball and each racket? provenance
Service and rally Represents the event sequence needed to judge how a point starts, proceeds and ends.
Table-tennis decisions depend on the order and location of contacts and bounces, including distinctions between service and later returns.
Service execution
Captures the observable elements and outcome of the serve.
Serve evidence
Record the release, ball presentation, strike, bounce sequence and relevant net contact without treating missing observations as faults.
- Which required elements of the ball release, visibility, strike position and table-bounce sequence were actually observed? measurement
- Given those observations and the applicable rules, should play continue, the service be replayed, or a ruling be requested? action
Returns and point ending
Tracks return sequence and events that may terminate the rally.
Rally contact sequence
Record who struck the ball, its subsequent contacts and bounces, and any event requiring a ruling.
- What sequence of racket contacts, net contacts, table bounces and missed returns is supported by the observation? measurement
- Does the evidence establish a point-ending event, or is a contact such as table edge versus table side unresolved? boundary
Score and playing order Connects rally outcomes to competitive progression and player obligations.
A correct point result is insufficient if service, doubles order or end changes are then assigned incorrectly.
Game and match progression
Records the score and applies the declared game and match completion conditions.
Score transition
Maintain confirmed and provisional scores, including the target, winning margin and games needed to win.
- What are the current points and games won, and which recorded rally decisions produced them? provenance
- Under the declared scoring format, does the latest confirmed point continue the game, end the game or complete the match? action
Service, receiving and ends
Tracks the changing assignment of servers, receivers, doubles turns and table ends.
Next player obligations
Record the initial choices and subsequent transitions needed to determine who serves, receives and strikes next.
- Who must serve and receive next, and what doubles striking sequence follows from the established order? action
- Does the current score or game transition require a service change, receiving-order change or change of ends? action
Interruption and resumption Handles stopped play, uncertain decisions and the conditions needed to resume coherently.
Table-tennis play can stop without awarding a point, and resumption must preserve the appropriate score, order and decision authority.
Stoppage classification
Separates replay situations, authorised breaks and other interruptions.
Reason for stopped play
Record the trigger, rally phase and ruling for a stoppage, including whether the point remains unresolved.
- Was play stopped because of a service-related replay decision, outside interference, a requested break, equipment trouble or another recorded cause? definition
- What must happen before resumption, and should the score and service assignment be retained or corrected? action
Ruling and correction
Preserves evidence and authority when a rally outcome or playing order is contested.
Decision authority and recovery
Record the disputed observation, responsible decision-maker and authorised correction while retaining the decision history.
- Who has authority to resolve the disputed bounce, service legality, score or order in this session? provenance
- Which correction or review procedure applies, and what confirmed state should be used when play resumes? action
Evidence and external alignment What the world already says about this thing, gathered so the model can be checked against it.
A model that cannot be lined up against existing standards, identifiers and practice cannot be adopted by anyone who already uses them.
Reported evidence
Findings from the breadth pass, kept separate from the structural claims.
Kinds and varieties
Reported by the breadth pass; each item needs checking against its source before it becomes normative.
- singles
- doubles
- mixed doubles
- para table tennis
- hardbat table tennis
- recreational ping-pong
- Which of these kinds and varieties hold for the sense of table tennis this model covers, and on what evidence? provenance
What the second pass must settle
- Does an existing Vercy world model already cover table tennis, requiring this registry entry to link to it instead of receiving a separate publication?
- Which authoritative rules editions should ground the first researched version, and how should recreational modifications be represented?
- Which adapted table-tennis provisions belong within this model, and which require references to separate accessibility or competition models?
- What minimum observation quality is needed to judge service visibility, ball release and table-edge contacts, and when must the agent leave the ruling unresolved?
- Should specialised competition procedures such as the expedite system be included in the initial model or introduced through a rules-dependent extension?