PHYGITAL activity at home

1. The COVID-19 pandemic demonstrated that isolation of people on a population scale was effective in stopping spread of disease. However, the problem of physical inactivity during long isolation has yet to be solved. Lack of exercise and space for movements at most homes causes fast deterioration of physical and mental health.
2. MDXD is pioneering technology enabling PHYGITAL activity that combines physical (PHY) and digital (GITAL) activities. Our patented hardware allows human-computer interaction by natural foot movements simulating walking and running.
3. Low cost, portability, and adaptability to health, living, and other personal conditions makes it a globally scalable solution to sustain physical activity at home during pandemics. It can improve sustainability of long-term isolation as pandemic countermeasure by fighting health and mental consequences of physical inactivity and sedentary lifestyle. 

https://www.dropbox.com/s/7xri...

The spread of COVID-19 in China was curbed by immediate and strict isolation of a large proportion of the population (over 1.4 billion) at their homes. In Western countries, home-based isolation was more selective and fast spread of disease continued at least till a significant proportion of the population was vaccinated. Experience with flu vaccines and mutations of COVID-19 indicate limitations of vaccination programs against viral infections, particularly in poor countries.

The global level of technology and internet penetration allows maintenance of the same level of audio-visual communication during isolation at home. Online entertainment became a commonplace, while the COVID-19 pandemic boosted work from home. Technology helps combatting loneliness, stress, and depression during periods of isolation. Home food delivery was feasible without the face-to-face contacts.

However, staying at home or isolated otherwise prevents from sufficient physical activity that causes fast decrement of both physical and mental health. It is considered as a negative second-order consequence of COVID-19 pandemic, particularly for people suffering chronic diseases, cardiac patients, elderly, and other special populations. Overall, lack of physical exercise may limit the duration of isolation, whereas enabling exercise at home for everyone isolated would improve resilience of the whole population to withstand pandemics. 

The need for exercise at home during COVID-19 boosted sales of cycling machines and other fitness equipment. It also increased popularity of interactive cycling, which represents PHYGITAL activity where physical exercise is incentivised by user’s engagement in virtual bike racing (gamification). However, interactive cycling machines are expensive (up to $5000), require large dedicated space or a whole room, and the range of playable games is limited to bike racing.

Unlike cycling machines, MDXD pedal devices (hardware) enable linear foot movements to simulate walking and running in sitting users. They can be attached to chairs and beds so that mitigating the risk of falling and injury during training in small rooms. MDXD devices are inexpensive, compact, portable, and adaptable to each user health and living conditions to sustain activity in isolation including bed-ridden users. Sensors in the devices detect user leg activity to control a wide range of software. A validated range of compatible apps include video games, digital sports, AI-powered chatbots, and VR, that extends PHYGITAL activities far beyond bike racing feasible with interactive cycling machines. These features make it a scalable solution for the maintenance of physical activity during pandemics, also reducing an overall inequality of accessing exercise means at home.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/7xrivfqpn2unnze/MDXD%20Pitch%20MIT%201206521.pdf?dl=0

A typical way of isolation during COVID-19 pandemic was staying at home with the family, leaving the house only for grocery shopping and urgent matters. Nowadays, most family members possess personal electronic gadgets and internet connection enabling to communicate with peers and access to online activities, entertainment, telehealth, and work. Technology became accessible for all ages including young kids and elderly, but most households have no facilities for exercise. By imposing home-based isolation, the COVID-19 pandemic worsens the global crisis of physical inactivity, sedentary lifestyle, and associated chronic diseases.

Our solution aims to facilitation physical activity at all households for improve health and resilience of families to combat pandemics on the population scale. Sustained exercise is the key intervention in management and prevention of chronic diseases, and training at home may reduce inequality in access to exercise during pandemics (Bambra et al., 2020). Even one MDXD device per household can provide exercise solution for a whole family through adaptability of hardware, software, and connectivity options. The hardware can be easy adjusted to individual parameters of the user and attached to standard chairs or beds.

Examples of compatible types of age- and health relevant interactive software include:

Video games https://www.mdxd.com.au/digital-games

Digital sports https://www.mdxd.com.au/hybro-soccer

AI-powered chatbots https://www.mdxd.com.au/medexercise-chatbot

Online telehealth https://www.mdxd.com.au/healthcare

It means that everyone in the household can have a personalized solution for daily activity to meet recommended dose of exercise, such as 30 minutes of activity per day. Therefore, this technology can protect health of people during pandemics regardless their race, ethnicity, age, gender, or income in two ways: (i) by enabling to stay isolated from the outside exposure to diseases for longer; and (ii) by improving health through regular exercise. 

Providing the direct connection between physical and mental health, this solution can combat stress, depression, and other health impacts of long isolation during pandemics through integrated physical and digital (PHYGITAL) activity.

We have designed, produced, and tested MDXD technology in validation studies, which were peer-reviewed and published in international medical journals (links at https://www.mdxd.com.au/healthcare). These studies included over 50 participants, including the most vulnerable clinical populations such as elderly people undergoing exercise rehabilitation. We received expression of interest and preparing to pilot our technology as telerehabilitation and elderly care solutions in Australia and China.