BBalance — a Baracoda start-up has launched what it says is the world’s first smart bathmat.  

Through a patented technology which allows for user recognition, BBalance collects and communicates important data about the body: weight, body composition, and novel health indexes such as posture and balance. Conceived alongside a scientific committee and approved by a community of beta testers, this connected device allows users to regularly and holistically keep tabs on their health. For the final phase of its launch, it’s inviting people to contribute towards a crowdfunding campaign, allowing contributors to sign on as its first users in the world.

From the first mechanical scales to the latest smart devices, the routine of weighing ourselves to monitor our bodies hasn't changed in over 100 years. BBalance is aiming to redefine our understanding of our bodies’ health, tracking more than just weight and taking multiple conditions into account, recognising symptoms that can only be accounted for when examined over time.

The limitation of physical activities — amplified by the COVID-19 pandemic and its normalisation of home offices — has modified our behaviour, making multiple syndromes more frequent, notably back pain. This has been verified by a British survey conducted by Nurofen in October 2020: over a third of people compelled to work from home under lockdown suffered an increased level of back pain.

BBalance has taken it upon itself to accompany users in their preventative health journeys, at home each day, throughout their beauty and health routines in their bathrooms. BBalance can anticipate back problems by analysing posture and proposing daily, responsive exercises.

BBalance can take daily measurements of posture, weight, balance and body composition. Users are then presented with a score that ranks their individual balance and postures, which they can then improve via daily exercises. Data tracking is presented directly on users’ smartphones, available at their leisure, and is also accessible on smartwatches, giving a holistic view of their overall health.

BBalance offers multiple functionalities, all-in-one:

• Measurements thanks to its integration into users’ bathmats. Users simply need to step onto their bathmat as they get out of the shower or while they brush their teeth. Measurements are taken and sent directly to the application.
• A dedicated app: since BBalance doesn’t have a screen, users can check their data directly on the app. To reduce the stress that comes with weighing ourselves, BBalance proposes a data-intensive viewing mode, or a simplified view that translates data into global trends interwoven with relevant advice. 
• Posture analysis to predict back pain and for early detection of scoliosis in teens.
• Balance evaluation to guide people in rehabilitating or improving their balance.
• Weight calibration adapted with regards to users’ positions on their bathmats, accounting for the imprecisions that are inherent in conventional scales, ensuring that measured weight doesn’t vary based on user movements.
• A recognition system via artificial intelligence, which identifies users based on their footprints.
• Daily exercises that improve health pertaining to various axes: posture perfection, muscle building, balance improvement, or relaxation exercises that easily integrate into users’ morning and evening routines.
• The supervision of children's growth/ development (weight, posture, foot size)
• Body composition measurements, with a presentation of muscle mass, fat mass, water mass and bone mass.

Jean-Marc Druesne, CEO of BBalance and CMO of Baracoda, said: “As sixteen million American adults experience persistent or chronic backaches, BBalance participates in reducing risks and pain. Each day, BBalance facilitates the tracking of balance and weight. We’re offering real change when it comes to users’ perspectives thanks to this smart bathmat.”