JP2004508845A - Kiosk with body fat analyzer - Google Patents

Abstract

An apparatus is provided for assessing a user's physical condition based on personal data provided by the user and measurements made by the apparatus. The results of the evaluation and the corresponding health-related information are output and / or printed for display on a screen. Embodiments include kiosks such as stand-alone structures or seated units that typically have a touch screen to indicate a series of advertisements or invitations. When the user touches the screen, the screen prompts the user to enter personal information such as age, height, gender, and general physical condition. The kiosk measures the user's weight with a built-in measurement device, instructs the user to place his hand on a set of electrodes, and then uses conventional body fat analysis techniques such as bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA). Perform body fat composition measurement to be used. The kiosk outputs a body composition analysis (ie, body fat percentage) to the screen and a detailed report of the analysis results, including an assessment of the user's physical condition, and a kiosk processor based on the user's personal information and test results. Print selected advice and special offers, eg, product coupons. The user can also request information on various items (eg, fitness, nutrition, weight loss, etc.) and products (eg, magazines, health clubs, etc.).

Description

[0001]
【Technical field】
The present invention relates to a kiosk with a body fat analyzer, and more particularly, to a kiosk that measures a user's body fat and returns information to the user based on the body fat measurement.
[0002]
[Background Art]
Devices that provide visceral fat mass, subcutaneous-visceral fat ratio and other fitness (health index) as indicators for health care are well known. Typically, an impedance value is measured over two or more limbs in contact with a set of electrodes, and the fat value and fat ratio are calculated using the impedance value and the personal data already entered. . Such devices are hand-held and portable or are part of a fixation device, for example, using an electrode unit for limbs.
[0003]
Devices for assessing an individual's physical fitness are also well known. For example, one conventional device obtains personal data from an individual via a computer keyboard, and measures heart rate, blood pressure, treadmill energy consumption, bicycle energy consumption, intensity fitness (eg, hand strength or isometric measurement), flexibility. An individual's cardiovascular fitness is measured based on at least one of sexual fitness and body composition (body fat and / or weight measurement). Calculate the overall fitness index and output it to a computer display screen or printer.
[0004]
The conventional devices described above provide raw fitness statistics that are useful to healthcare professionals, but provide directly useful follow-up information, such as lifestyle, health or commercial product information, to the individual being evaluated. Not something. Therefore, its usefulness to the average individual is limited.
Accordingly, there is a need for an easy-to-use device for assessing a user's physical fitness and providing useful health-related information based on the user's fitness statistics.
[0005]
DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION
An advantage of the present invention is an easy-to-use device for measuring a user's body fat after entering the user's personal information and outputting the user's fitness rating along with lifestyle, health and product recommendations.
Still other advantages and features of the invention will be set forth in part in the description which follows, and in part will be obvious to those skilled in the art from the description, and may be learned from practice of the invention. I could do that. The advantages of the invention may be realized and obtained as particularly pointed out in the appended claims.
[0006]
According to the present invention, the above and other advantages include an input device for inputting personal data of a user, a body fat analyzer for measuring a user's body fat, and an output device for providing information to a user. And a processor for selecting information based on the user's personal data and body fat measurements and providing the information to an output device. The output information includes at least one of commercial information and information on health.
[0007]
Additional advantages of the invention will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art from the following detailed description of preferred embodiments of the invention, which merely illustrates the best mode intended to practice the invention. It will also be apparent that the invention is capable of other different implementations and that numerous details can be modified in various obvious respects without departing from the invention. Accordingly, the accompanying drawings and the following description are merely illustrative of the invention and are not intended to be limiting.
[0008]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
The present invention is described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which like parts are indicated by like reference numerals throughout the several views.
Conventional devices for assessing an individual's fitness do not provide useful information such as lifestyle, health and product recommendations that correspond to the individual's fitness assessment results. The present invention addresses and eliminates this problem of conventional fitness measurement devices.
[0009]
The present invention evaluates a user's physical condition based on personal data provided by the user and measurements made by the device. The results of the evaluation and the corresponding health-related information are output and / or printed for display on a screen. The present invention can be implemented in "kiosks" such as stand-alone structures or seated units. The user stands or sits on the kiosk (based on its design) and faces a touchscreen, which typically displays a series of advertisements and invitations. When the user touches the screen, the screen prompts the user to enter personal information such as age, height, gender, and general physical condition. The kiosk then weighs the user with a built-in measuring device and instructs the user to place his hand on a set of electrodes located below or somewhere on the screen. The kiosk then performs body fat composition measurements using conventional body fat analysis techniques such as bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA).
[0010]
The kiosk outputs a body composition analysis (ie, body fat percentage) to the screen. The kiosk then prompts the user to enter a name and phone number and a detailed report of the analysis, including an assessment of the user's physical condition, and the kiosk's processor selects based on the user's personal information and test results Print out the advised and special offers, eg product coupons. The user can also request information on various items (eg, fitness, nutrition, weight loss, etc.) and products (eg, magazines, health clubs, etc.).
[0011]
1A-1D illustrate a device in the form of a kiosk according to various embodiments of the present invention. The stand-alone kiosk 101 shown in FIG. 1A includes a monitor 102 for inputting data and displaying information through a touch screen, an electrode 103 held by a user for measuring body fat, and measuring the weight of the user. And a weight scale 104 for carrying out the measurement. The counter-type kiosk 111 shown in FIG. 1B is a monitor 112 for inputting data and displaying information through a touch screen, an electrode 113 held by a user for measuring body fat, and measuring the weight of the user. And a weight scale 114 for the user. The in-line kiosk 121 shown in FIG. 1C is a monitor 122 for inputting data and displaying information through a touch screen, an electrode 123 held by a user for measuring body fat, and measuring the weight of the user. And a weight scale 124 for the user. The seated kiosk 131 illustrated in FIG. 1D measures a monitor 132 for inputting data and displaying information through a touch screen, an electrode 133 held by a user for measuring body fat, and measuring the weight of the user. And a weight scale 134 for the user.
[0012]
FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an apparatus 200 according to the present invention. An input device 210 for inputting a user's personal data, such as a keyboard or touch screen, is in communication with a processor 230, such as a computer, that preferably performs the operations described herein electronically. For example, a set of electrodes 220 for contacting the user's finger is also connected to the processor 230, along with a scale 280, such as a conventional electronic scale, for measuring the weight of the user. Processor 230 includes circuitry for measuring a user's body fat (eg, body fat percentage, body fat ratio, etc.) in a conventional manner. As will be apparent to those skilled in the art, one well-known body fat measurement technique that can be used to practice the present invention is to allow a user to contact a set of electrodes, , The resulting impedance is measured, and the body fat of the user is calculated based on the impedance.
[0013]
The device 200 further includes a monitor 240 and a printer 250 connected to the processor 230 for providing information to a user. Monitor 240 may be coupled to input device 210 if input device 210 is a touch screen. A memory 260 is provided for storing data to be displayed or printed selected by the processor 230 and for storing personal information of the user. In addition, the processor 230 is connected to an external network via the Internet 270, for example.
[0014]
FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing an outline of the embodiment of the present invention. When the user approaches the kiosk of the present invention, such as the kiosk shown in FIGS. 1A-1D, a monitor, such as monitor 240, is presented with a series of advertisements and solicitations referred to as a "shopper cycle" (step 310). . One such screen is shown in FIG. 6A. If, at step 315, the user does not touch the screen, a "shopper cycle" follows. However, if the user is prompted (see FIG. 6A) and touches the screen, another screen as shown in FIG. 6B appears, prompting the user to begin a “test cycle” (step 320). In, information about the user's health, perception, and body composition (including performing body fat analysis) is collected. If the test is not completed in step 325, it is determined in step 330 whether the test can be completed. If not, the test is aborted and the "shopper cycle" is restarted.
[0015]
Upon completion of the test, a "recommendation module" in processor 230 selects lifestyle, health and product recommendations stored in memory 260 using information entered by the user and an analysis of the user's body fat. (Step 335). The processor 230 also has an “ad targeting module” 340 for selecting an advertisement to be presented to the user based on the input user information and body fat analysis. In step 345, a "results cycle" is initiated where advice is presented to the viewer with an option to remove personal data from monitor 230. Fitness targets, lifestyle changes, and useful products and services are listed, and advertisements and offers are displayed. An example of a body fat analysis result screen is shown in FIG. 6C, and an example of the advice is shown in FIG. 6D in literature form.
[0016]
At step 350, the user has the option to request more information. If the user wants more information, a "request cycle" is started at step 355, where detailed information about the product or the like is provided to the user. A screen that allows the user to access additional information is shown in FIG. 6E. Regardless of whether the user requests more information, at step 360 the user may choose to print their test results and / or other information. The results are stored, for example, on a central server that includes memory 260, which can be accessed via the Internet and kiosk (step 365).
[0017]
4A to 4D and FIG. 5 are flowcharts illustrating an embodiment of the present invention in detail. Referring to FIGS. 3 and 4A, steps 401 and 402 correspond to the "shopper cycle" of steps 310 and 315. If the user touches the screen when prompted in step 402, a "welcome screen" appears on the monitor 240 in step 403, and in step 404, either walks away or gets private information (step 405), Give the user the option to get information about the analysis to be performed (step 406) or to start the test (step 407). The user is then prompted to enter gender, age, height and body type in steps 408-411, respectively, and to confirm the data in step 412. The user can end the session at any time (step 413).
[0018]
In step 414, the user's weight is measured by the weight scale 280, and in step 415, the user is instructed to place a finger on the electrode 220. The resulting resistance is measured and the user's percent body fat and other well-known fitness statistics, such as basal metabolic rate (BMR), are calculated in a conventional manner.
Referring to FIG. 4B, in steps 416 and 417, the user's name and telephone number are entered if desired by the user. At step 418, the user's prior private issues are addressed, and at step 419, other health questions are given to the user.
[0019]
At step 420, the user has the option of displaying the test results or just printing the results. If the user chooses to display the results, the "Recommendation and Ad Targeting Module" of processor 230 (described above with reference to steps 335 and 340) may be based on the user's gender, age, body type and body fat results. Then, a predetermined set of pages to be displayed on the monitor 240 is selected (step 421). The "recommendation module" and "ad targeting module" of the processor 230 are shown in detail in FIG.
[0020]
In step 422, a “body fat percentage result page” is displayed, which includes a description of the body fat analysis result shown in FIG. 6C, a list of recommended products and programs, and a number of advertisements. At step 423, the user may select to print a "results page" at step 424, where the selected item is added to the print database. If the user selects “Next” in step 423, a “BMR result page” is displayed, which contains the results of the BMR calculation performed by processor 230, a list of recommended products and programs, Including advertising. At step 426, the user can select to print the "BMR result page" at step 427, where the selected item is added to the print database. If the user selects "next" in step 426, an "exercise / diet page" is displayed, which includes a description of the exercise and diet analysis results, a list of recommended products and programs, and a number of advertisements. Including. At step 429, the user may select to print the "exercise / diet page" at step 430, where the selected item is added to the print database.
[0021]
If the user selects in step 420 to print the test results only, processor 230 performs steps 421a through 430a as shown in FIG. 4C. Steps 421a through 430a correspond to steps 421 through 430, respectively, and are the same as steps 421 through 430, except that the user's test results are not displayed in steps 421a, 422a, and 425a.
[0022]
If the user selects "next" at step 429 or 429a, a "print cycle" begins at step 431 (FIG. 4d), where all documents in the print database are printed. While the document is being printed, special offers, coupons and other advertisements are displayed on monitor 240 (step 432), and the user has the option to print any offer by touching the screen at step 433. . The selected item is added to the print database and printed (step 434). When printing is completed in step 435, the "shopper cycle" (steps 401, 402) resumes.
[0023]
The present invention can be implemented using conventional materials, methods and equipment. Accordingly, such materials, devices and methods are not described in detail herein. In the above description, numerous specific details are set forth, such as specific materials, structures, chemicals, processes, etc., in order to provide a thorough understanding of the present invention. It is apparent, however, that the present invention may be practiced without these details. In other instances, well-known processing structures have not been described in detail so as not to unnecessarily obscure the present invention.
Here, only preferred embodiments of the invention and some examples of its versatility are shown and described. It is to be understood that the invention can be used in various other combinations and environments, and that changes and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1A
FIG. 3 illustrates a kiosk according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 1B
FIG. 3 illustrates a kiosk according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 1C
FIG. 3 illustrates a kiosk according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 1D
FIG. 3 illustrates a kiosk according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2
FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 3
5 is a flowchart illustrating an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 4A
5 is a flowchart illustrating an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 4B
5 is a flowchart illustrating an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 4C
5 is a flowchart illustrating an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 4D
5 is a flowchart illustrating an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 5
FIG. 4 illustrates a recommendation module and an advertisement targeting module according to the present invention.
FIG. 6A
FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a screen displayed according to the embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 6B
FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a screen displayed according to the embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 6C
FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a screen displayed according to the embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 6D
FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a screen displayed according to the embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 6E
FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a screen displayed according to the embodiment of the present invention.

Claims (1)

An input device for inputting user's personal data,
A body fat analyzer for measuring the body fat of the user;
An output device for providing information to a user;
A processor for selecting information based on the personal data and body fat measurements of the user, and providing the information to an output device;
The apparatus wherein the information comprises at least one of commercial information and health related information.

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