Project description
New gaming bands to keep players fit
Obesity and sedentary lifestyles are directly correlated. Staying fit requires at least 30 minutes of moderate physical activity daily combined with healthy nutrition. One way to boost fitness levels is to raise people’s awareness about how much exercise they need and actually get. The EU-funded Atomic Bands project builds on the popularity of gaming to promote fitness. It developed Atomic Bands for smart Bluetooth body motion gaming. These wearables, worn on the wrists or ankles, allow gamers to play anywhere and not have to stand in range of a camera. Players can move anywhere and still be in the game.
Objective
Exercise is a fundamental aspect of maintaining a healthy lifestyle however most people don’t enjoy exercise because it is
either too time consuming or not intellectually stimulating. 97% of people believe in the need for physical fitness, however
less than 5% of adults participate in the recommended minimum 30 minutes of exercise each day, while 75% of kids get less
than 1 hour of exercise per day. Obesity of the general population expected to reach 9.1% of the population in 2020 equating
to approximately 750 million people. With an increasing number of available game types and methods of gameplay, over 700
million people worldwide play video games. Mainstream gaming systems have an additional motion tracking hardware that
can be purchased in conjunction to expensive consoles. These devices however, only monitor and project physical
movement as opposed to teaching and correcting movement.
The Funky Bots Atomic Bands offer a cheap alternative to the mainstream gaming consoles and provide access to a large
fitness/gaming library at no added cost. The device comes equipped with a heart rate monitor, calorie counter, and state of
the art motion algorithms for tracking, logging, coaching, and analysis of physical performance. Funky Bots is initially
targeting users whom are prone to martial arts and dancing, however as the product gains market traction, the diversity of
augmented reality games will attract users of all sports and fitness levels.
During the phase 1 feasibility assessment, Funky Bots will perform an in depth market analysis, establish a go-to-market
strategy, and run a small scale user-experience test. Further development plan and industrialisation strategy will also be
established.
Fields of science
- medical and health sciencesclinical medicinepsychiatry
- natural sciencescomputer and information sciencesartificial intelligencecomputer visionmotion analysis
- medical and health scienceshealth sciencesnutritionobesity
- natural sciencescomputer and information sciencessoftwaresoftware applicationssimulation software
- natural sciencescomputer and information sciencessoftwaresoftware applicationsvideo games
Programme(s)
Funding Scheme
SME-1 - SME instrument phase 1Coordinator
E9 5EN LONDON
United Kingdom
The organization defined itself as SME (small and medium-sized enterprise) at the time the Grant Agreement was signed.