Puma has developed an amazing gadget that can help track and field athletes train better. Called BeatBot, it goes beyond the conventional wearables that were available in the past years.
This device is propped up with wheels, shaped like a box and is designed to race against track runners so that they can improve their times. An accelerometer is integrated in the device together with a front-facing camera from GoPro, plus infrared sensors for following track lines, and lastly an Arduino microcontroller.
Together, all these features make BeatBot able to count the number of times the wheels revolve to compute the speed of the runner and the distance he has already travelled.
And best of all, it can be set so that a runner can beat the speed of 27.7 miles per hour, the rate at which Usain Bolt set his record in 2009.
According to Puma, BeatBot is able to make as much as 100 adjustments per second, depending on the data it gathers regarding the distance and speed covered. Thus, it can help runners push their limits in fast sprints. But it can also help runners negotiate long distances.
Currently, the globally popular shoe brand is negotiating a shoe deal with Usain Bolt. But Bolt can't certainly beat BeatBot because it can race up to 28.993 mph, or 44.66 kilometers per hour (much faster than his record of 27.7 mph).
Shaped like a Puma shoebox, the price of BeatBox is not yet certain since the company didn't volunteer any information in that regard. However, it said that it is expensive and is strictly for the use of athletes that the company sponsors.
An advertiser, J. Walter Thompson New York is working with the company on this project and a video shared by the company displays its amazing features.
