Flowie is a 'persuasive virtual coach' to motivate elderly individuals to walk. It uses a step counter with a wireless connection to keep track of your favorite lazy senior's daily movements and a screen at home (see picture above) that lets elderly people see at a glance whether they have been active enough over the course of the day.

After consulting with seniors an animated flower was chosen to provide the feedback. If the user has moved sufficiently, the flower is happy. If they don't move enough, it looks sad. The flower lays low if everything goes OK, but tries to get the user's attention if he or she needs 'a little push'. By touching the screen, users can get a more detailed insight in their progression over time. Field studies showed that the participating seniors felt comfortable being coached by Flowie, and that they felt more motivated to move.

Flowie was developed as a graduation project by TU Delft Master student Iñaki Merino Albaina, within the independent@home research project.


Flowie from Iñaki Merino Albaina on Vimeo.