Special Needs VR Gaming Startup Timocco Granted UK patent
Tel Aviv, Israel (PRWEB) January 07, 2015 -- Timocco, a gaming platform developer for kids with special needs announced today it was granted a UK patent for its unique computer-based object tracking technology.
Timocco’s low-cost online gaming software is designed to treat children with a range of conditions and developmental delays. The 50+ games on Timocco’s online platform motivate children to develop motor, cognitive and communication skills through play.
“This is another step toward realizing our dream to make Timocco accessible to millions of children with special needs worldwide who can benefit from these games as an affordable therapeutic supplement,” said Timocco’s CEO, Eran Arden. “Timocco’s games mean children can develop vitally-important core skills at home, saving time, money and effort for families and already overstretched health-care providers.”
Watch a short video about Timocco here.
Timocco’s object tracking technology allows for an adjustable range of motion - which
means those who might not have full range of motion as a result of a disability can set Timocco’s gaming platform to best suit their capability and thus ensure the benefit of the game’s intended therapeutic activity. This allows those in wheelchairs, or sufferers of spastic cerebral palsy or other motor and cognitive disabilities to use the platform.
The variable range of motion setting was based on the premise that while computer screens are typically rectangular, the natural range of motion of a person’s arms is usually circular or elliptical. When accurately tracking a person’s movement pattern to a screen this would mean they would be unable to reach every part. Timocco’s patent was granted for its innovation that accurately translates the relative position of the object to a differently shaped target.
Timocco’s range of motion setting allows games to be calibrated to accommodate those in wheelchairs or with limited maneuverability. Conversely, the range of motion can be set to pose a greater challenge and encourage a child to extend their reach.
Timocco’s gaming platform is intended for treatment across a range of conditions and developmental delays, including, but not limited to, ADHD, Cerebral Palsy, Developmental Coordination Disorder, Autism and Learning Disabilities.
Game Play
Game play is facilitated through Timocco’s patented tracking technology which identifies red, green or blue objects held by the player. Depending on the specific game, these objects can be used on-screen to simulate the limbs of a character (such as Timocco, the company’s affable monkey mascot) or a movable bridge, spray cans, or similar.
Timocco’s 50+ games are designed to suit developmental ages 3-12. Players and therapists can select games according to the specific motor, cognitive or communication skills they want to develop.
In-Clinic and At Home
Timocco is available in a professional package for therapists that enables multiple user profiles and tracks players’ performance developments, and a home-player edition for play in-between therapy sessions. Both editions allow access to Timocco’s 50+ games.
Therapists can pre-program a player’s workout schedule, login to monitor a child’s progress, and watch heat-map recordings to view motion patterns. Therapists can also access Timocco’s Progress Tool to analyze performance graphs that chart a player’s development of selected core skills - bilateral coordination, crossing of the midline, hand-eye coordination and attention.
In a collaboration with Timocco, Rhode Island Hospital and Brown University, a joint project is planned to develop and research a new cost-effective web-based therapeutic game platform for children with physical challenges, thanks to a grant from the BIRD Foundation, which promotes research and development in industries that mutually benefit Israel and the United States.
For more information about Timocco, please visit http://www.timocco.com
Eran Arden, Timocco Ltd, http://www.timocco.com, +972 508885690, [email protected]
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