Start-up Jomi Interactive is prototyping a device that will help you drink the requisite 2.5 litres of water per day.
According to TechCrunch, the company is testing two sensorised band-shaped devices, called Jomi Band, that attach to water bottles, with the hopes of narrowing them down to one to market. The first, a small ring which wraps around the top of a bottle, reminds users at pre-set intervals to take a sip of water. The second, which attaches to the bottom of the bottle, will remind users to drink up as well as measure how much water is being consumed. Data will then be sent via Bluetooth to a smartphone app, so users can view charts and graphs on their beverage consumption.
“We’re in the middle of production development with Alphaform in Finland and our team will be working out of their office next week to finalize the design and choose the best materials to work with,” Jomi spokesman Henri Viiralt told us via email. He added that the app will feature open API so it can be used in unison with health trackers such as Nike+ Fuelband, Fitbit Flex and Jawbone UP to provide another layer of useful information to the user.
TechCrunch reports that the device’s software could also be used in another app that warns alcohol drinkers when they’ve reached their limit, or it could track soft drink intake for those charting their diabetes risk.
Jomi is partnering for testing the market in Europe with bottle maker KOR water and aims to get US companies interested as well.
This isn’t the first device to attempt to measure liquid intake. Showcased at CES in 2011, Cambridge Consultants’ i-dration bottle syncs with a smartphone to help maintain optimum levels of hydration during workouts. According to the developer, drinking too much water can have an equally negative effect on athletic performance as drinking too little, and this device is aimed at preventing that. External temperature and drinking quantity and frequency are monitored through the bottle’s grip sensors, and when your body needs a drink, a blue light comes on.
