A tilt in the right direction

5 February 2016

A tilt in the right direction

A group of Victoria University of Wellington alumni has developed an interactive gaming system to help take the chore out of physiotherapy exercises.

The system—a lightweight balance training board called ‘Tilt’—allows the user to play games by standing on and tilting the board, while at the same time strengthening their muscles and improving their overall balance.

The developers, a team of engineering and design alumni—Swibo’s Benjamin Dunn, Lukas Stoecklein, Connor Broad and Zac Bird—formed the idea for Tilt at Victoria’s annual Entrepreneur Bootcamp.

“We wanted to make it easier for people to carry out their physiotherapy exercises and recover properly, and realised playing games can be an incentive,” says Benjamin.

“The system uses any smartphone to connect the board to a computer running the games. The phone can then record the board’s movements and measurements, which are analysed by computer software. This helps physiotherapists and sports trainers track the user’s improvements and provide tailored training as time goes on.”

The system is already used by professional sports trainers and could extend beyond this, says Benjamin.

“A lot of people can benefit from these kinds of exercises, including the elderly, children or those with disabilities. It’s very helpful for preventing injuries before they occur. It’s also for people who just want to be a little bit more active and have fun gaming.”

The current three games— NeoZen, Hexile and Unbearable—see users race their friends in space rockets, solve puzzles in an island adventure or fight back against deadly bears.

The team is already developing more games and hopes to begin bulk manufacturing of the boards through their recently launched Kickstarter campaign.

“We see the potential to make a real difference with Tilt and are excited for people to start using it and seeing its benefits,” says Benjamin

This year’s Bootcamp teams are preparing for their final pitch event on 24 February. The Bootcamp is run by Victoria University and Viclink, the University’s commercialisation office, in partnership with The BizDojo, Deloitte Private and Chapman Tripp.

“The Victoria Entrepreneur Bootcamp brought our team together, and the combination of our different backgrounds encourages and facilitates collaboration,” says Benjamin. “That collaboration is what fuels the creativity you need for entrepreneurship.”

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