HOVR: A Gadget For The Legs

Working out is essential for our health and well-being. Unfortunately, individuals who sit at a desk everyday don’t get much exercise and sometimes it’s not enough to work out during the week to compensate that long period of time spent at a desk. Great product designs have been created to help users with their back problems and position issues. However, these products don’t allow for much movement and keep users in a lethargic state. To tackle this issue, HOVR is an alternative to sitting at a desk whilst getting some movement. The Chicago-based start-up got support from the Mayo Clinic and The University of Illinois at Chicago who conducted successful tests on the product design.

An App-connected Product Design

HOVR was invented by John, a fitness trainer, and Ron, a Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation physician. They merged their knowledge and experience and reached out to industrial designers to create a smart device designed to let users exercise while sitting at a desk. The product design is built with two floating pads that can be adjusted and hover the floor (hence the name of the invention).

“HOVR is a purely mechanical, patent ­pending device that activates muscles producing movement of the lower body and engaging the core using gravity, kinetic energy and harmonic motion. Such movement may provide some of the health benefits of hourly “walks” recommended by ergonomists, without requiring you to leave your desk or interrupting your concentration,” say the inventors.

HOVR comes with an optional activity tracker app that lets the user count their daily calorie burn and the distance they’ve walked using the product design. The product design comes in two different models; one that users can attach to the desk and another one built with an independent stand.

Their Indiegogo campaign has been successfully funded and the developers are expected to ship the product design in July 2016. We support innovations that help users stay healthy and fit. We believe that an innovation like HOVR doesn’t limit itself to users at their workplace, it can also benefit the elderly and individuals with limited mobility.

About: MAKO Design + Invent is the original firm providing world-class consumer product development services tailored to startups, small manufacturers, and inventors. Simply put, we are the leading one-stop-shop for developing your physical product from idea to store shelves, all in a high-quality, cost-effective, and timely manner. We operate as one powerhouse 30-person product design team spread across 4 offices to serve you (Austin, Miami, San Francisco, & Toronto). We have full-stack in-house industrial design, mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, patent referral, prototyping, and manufacturing services. To assist our startup and inventor clients, in addition to above, we help with business strategy, product strategy, marketing, and sales/distribution for all consumer product categories. Also, our founder Kevin Mako hosts The Product Startup Podcast, the industry's leading hardware podcast. Check it out for tips, interviews, and best practices for hardware startups, inventors, and product developers. Click HERE to learn more about MAKO Design + Invent!