Have you ever wondered how early people can calculate or count the number of exacts steps to reaching a specific destination? Well, aside from literally counting the steps, an early device known as a pedometer that dates as far as 1770 was invented by the Swiss horologist Abraham-Louis Perrelet. In some parts of the history dated 1777, the first mechanical pedometer was invented by America’s Founding Father—Thomas Jefferson.
Before the invention of your best buys Fitbit in Waterford, pedometer technology is the development that became the foundation of fitness trackers. Let’s see the inventions of the past year that led to the smart fitness watches that we have now.
1921 Galvanic Skin Response and Polygraphs
Polygraphs or commonly knowns as lie detectors, were the first machines to have sensors measuring a person’s pulse rate through the GSR or Galvanic Skin Response. Devices such as the polygraph were used by policemen to detect lying indicators when a suspect is under interrogation. Most fitness trackers that we have now also use the GSR tech.
1965 First Modern Pedometer: Manpo-Kei
Invented by Dr. Yoshiro Hatano, a Japanese professor at Kyushu University of Health and Welfare—the Manpo-Kei means “10,000 steps meter”. Yes, we know today was taken from his research that it takes 10,000 steps to fight obesity. And that number of steps is adequate with a balanced diet and exercise to maintain a healthy body. Manpo-Kei at that time was a gadget worn around the waist to calculate the number of steps.
The Fitbit
A hardware start-up that started in 2007 is small wearable sensory devices by James Park, and Eric Friedman took the tech industry by storm. Many people like to take care of their health and put efforts to stay in shape; this start-up was made for precisely tracking the steps made and monitoring health. Up until now, people look for Fitbit Cork in trusted superstores in Ireland.
Check out this infographic to learn more. Go check out Irwin’s Megastore Today!
History of Activity Trackers (From Pedometers to Fitbit) Infographic
Before the present time where we enjoy the smartwatches in Waterford, many inventions were founded through pedometer technology such as polygraphs or lie detectors. The Manpo-Kei measures the 10,000-step program to avoid obesity, to name a few.
Here are more of the other inventions that led eventually led to Fitbit in Cork.
1971 Accelerometers
Accelerometers are devices that can detect the motion of a moving object, such as the sharp deceleration of a vehicle that causes airbags to be deployed during car accidents for the drivers to avoid fatal injuries. Accelerometers are also used in missile technologies to calculate the position, orientation, and velocity of the moving object without external references, and in our time, accelerators are used for step counting to see if a person has already reached the 10,000-step target.
1982 Polar 2000
The forefather of all activity trackers like the one that athletes use is the Polar Sports Tester PE2000. The technology is a combination of the ECG or electrocardiogram and a radio chest strap. After almost two years, PE3000 was released in 1984 as the first watch that has a biometric display that was later introduced as Target Zones as a device for an athlete’s heart rate-based training in 1987.
The Fitbit
What started as a hardware tech start-up in 2007 became a powerhouse tech in just ten years. James Park and Eric Friedman created small and wearable sensors to address the changing times without compromising people’s need to check on their health and exercise routines. Up until now, people look for Fitbit Cork in trusted superstores in Ireland to track their hours of sleep and calorie burn; some of these Fitbit products can be clipped on clothes to be worn or as watches connected to their smartphone devices.
Learn more about activity trackers through this IRWINS MEGASTORE Infographic.
