While Movea’s main announcement recently was focused on their MoveTV product, they’ve actually been working with so-called body-area networks for a long time. This involves the placement of sensors on various parts of the human body, to be used for different purposes. While one use is for motion animation, there are also medical and fitness-related applications.
In particular, it has found use in physical therapy, where the sensors can monitor progress and pinpoint issues.
Moving further into the sports and fitness arena, they can use it in running shoes. They claim that it’s more accurate than GPS or mechanical systems for gauging distance and stride. They can also monitor shoe wear-out and help prevent injuries by encouraging proper motion.
They’ve even used it for virtual coaching. One example is a swimming lap counter: you wear the item on the back of your head, and at each turn, your music (who does sports without music anymore?) is lowered, and the lap count is whispered into your ear.
These gizmos are apparently only available in Europe and Asia, since the company they’ve engaged with on this, Decathlon, has no North American presence.
