Couch tests, bootcamps and… ducks!
What a busy couple of weeks we’ve had! From couch tests to book tests, with a Wellington bootcamp in between, there’s been plenty to do on our part and we’re still going strong.
We are of course talking about our entry in the C-Prize competition for our fall-prevention system. If you’re unsure what we’re talking about, check out this post.
FallCast is a wearable technology that we are developing as part of the C-Prize competition. We aim to use this wearable to improve predictions of when a person is likely to fall, providing an opportunity to intervene before an injury occurs.
The Couch Test
Let’s start with our scientifically named experiment, the Couch Test. We ordered some test devices from an overseas vendor who specialise in development boards for wearable devices. These boards already have an accelerometer, gyroscope, barometer, a light sensor and a number of other parts, alongside a Bluetooth module, making them perfect for the kind of prototyping we’re doing. To top it all off, they sell different clips, bands and other cases that let you use them on any item of clothing you want, or even as a watch.
Needless to say, we were pretty excited when they arrived, so we set out to do our first tests! We had the algorithm we needed, so in our minds all we needed to do was strap the devices to our shoes, take some steps and voila: it measures our steps! But of course, science is never so easy.
After messing around with fairly random data gathered by us walking around a big room, we decided we needed something a bit more repeatable. We also wanted to record just a single step, to make sure we weren’t grabbing the wrong bit of data. Thus, the Couch Test was born: we used the couch close to our desks to measure a single step (Sheldon is rather tall) so that we knew the approximate length of the step.
After some wrestling with translating the algorithm into code, we ran our first test. Boy, it was scary to check the algorithm’s output! It said our single step was… ~80,000m long… You might say we were a little bit off. We quickly spotted we were using a few incorrect units however, so we’ve started combing through it statement by statement, so don’t you worry!
Bootcamp in Wellington
Wowsers! This event was hosted by Callaghan Innovation, the creators of C-Prize, for which they flew all ten teams down (or up, for some) to Wellington for two days of gruelling questions, non-stop networking, inspiring presentations, plenty of coffee and mountains of food.
What really was amazing about this bootcamp was seeing all the awesome projects that everyone is working on. From fitness, work safety to healthcare, everyone in the room was dedicated to improving lives. Seasoned experts from various backgrounds rotated through the teams and offered fascinating insight and challenged our thinking to make sure that we are on the right track.
The Book Test
Now introducing our second test. This test was to ensure we were able to correctly determine the angle/orientation of the device. This test was made using the finest of measurement tools featuring a series of books to create an inclination to test on. The angle calculated using some good old trigonometry allowed us to validate that our algorithm was able to correctly estimate the angle of the foot. Have a look at the gif to see just how professional this test was!
Looking forward
We’re moving closer to nailing our algorithm everyday, so we will continue working our brain muscles in this area. We’re currently getting some pretty accurate results for the first part of the calculations, so it’s looking good.
As mentioned before, we’ve identified a need for more information from our potential users, so we will be having lots of tea and biscuits while talking to some elderly who’d like to help.
In response to that, we can start thinking about the form factor of our device — how it might attach to their shoes, whether it needs to be on the hip or somewhere else, along with a number of other questions.
See you guys soon!
