Beyond Glass

In certain situations the elderly can experience insufficient amounts of physical activity. Several projects involving the Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences work on finding a solution to this problem.

From these studies, it is clear that many of the current ‘exergame’ systems have a user interface which is not intuitive enough, particularly for elderly users. Notably, tablet-based systems are difficult to operate and in the case of the Kinect, the user must be positioned directly in front of the sensor constraining the useable area.

The Digital Life Centre is currently working on touch sensitive materials and new methods of data processing as part of the COMMIT programme ‘Virtual Worlds for Wellbeing’. The ‘Beyond Glass’ project combines these materials with sensors (named ‘accelerometers’) so that a rich sensing module can be created for innovative therapies and a user-friendly interface for ‘exergaming’.