Although some of us may see hula hoops as simple playthings, many people utilize them in serious workouts, or even in performance art. The HoopLoop was designed with such folks in mind, as it electronically counts rotations and assesses form.
Developed by a group of Austrian entrepreneurs, the HoopLoop system consists of two curved, flexible modules that are strapped to opposite sides of a third-party hula hoop. We’re still waiting to hear back about whether both units contain electronics, or if one is simply a dummy counterweight for the other.
In any case, as the user proceeds to start hooping, an integrated IMU (inertial measurement unit) sets about counting the number of full rotations that the hoop makes around the person’s body. That data is transmitted via Bluetooth to a dedicated iOS/Android app on the user’s smartphone.
The app not only displays the rate and total number of rotations – plus the direction in which they were made – but it also tells the user how many calories they’re burning, tracks their training progress, and warns them if they’re hooping more to one side than the other. It can also simultaneously store the settings and track the stats for up to eight differently sized hoops, as the user swaps the modules back and forth between them.
According to the designers, a single replaceable button cell battery ought to be good for about 60 hours of runtime.
Should you be interested, HoopLoop is currently the subject of a Kickstarter campaign. Assuming it reaches production, a pledge of €45 (about US$55) will get you a setup – the planned retail price is €59.90 ($73).
HoopLoop designed to smarten up “dumb” hula hoops [New Atlas]