Why are most activity trackers worn on our wrists when the hard work — running, biking, etc. — use our legs? An Ottawa-based company has launched a new product, LegBand LEO, that moves the sensors down the body with a wearable designed to optimize workouts and reduce risk of injury.
LEO is worn on the thigh and is equipped with sensors to measure electrical activity, heart rate and motion. What sets it apart from others leg-worn wearables is its ability to measure not only muscle activity and heart rate, but also hydration, muscle intensity, muscle fatigue and technique.
“Popular fitness wearables estimate performance metrics based on a very limited data set because they are predominately accelerometer-based, meaning they track their own motion instead of measuring human body signals,” said Dr. Leonard MacEachern, CEO of GestureLogic. “LEO takes the guesswork out of fitness tracking because it is a biomedical device that actually monitors your body.”
The LegBand is the first product from Ottawa startup GestureLogic, a company created from award-winning research conducted at Carleton University. The company is striving to bring professional biodata to the masses in ways that are actionable and easy to understand.
The LEO app interprets complex biosignals gathered by the leg band into meaningful recommendations that coach users as they are working out, to mitigate injury and optimize performance. “Some want pure numbers, and others want more guidance. LEO does it all. Even if you’ve never heard the words ‘lactic acid’ before, LEO helps you put that information to good use,” GestureLogic points out on its website.
The more users wear LEO, the smarter it gets. It starts to spot patterns and offers insights with its adaptive learning. It also gets smarter based on the trends it learns from the wider community of LEO wearers; The more people that use the leg band, the better it becomes at pointing out areas of improvement. Users can also tap into this community by competing with friends and even pro athletes using the many social components integrated into the experience.
GestureLogic is currently crowdfunding LEO on Indiegogo with a campaign goal of $50,000, and are already more than a third of the way there. Backers are able to grab a legband for $179USD, forty percent off the retail price. LEO is expected to ship to backers as early as Spring, 2015.
Source: Indiegogo
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