NASA’s Glenn Research Center in in Cleveland has signed their first commercial startup licensing agreement with AirFlare LLC located in Nashville to produce the Glenn-patented Portable Unit for Metabolic Analysis www.nasa.gov/centers/glenn/technology/puma_tech.html. This agreement makes AirFlare the go-to-source for the public to access NASA technology in the fitness market.
A team of Glenn engineers initially developed the portable unit referred to as PUMA to monitor the oxygen consumption and carbon dioxide production rates of astronauts exercising during long missions. The portable unit was designed to give the crew the ability to move around the spacecraft without being tethered to a large immovable unit. AirFlare will develop the PUMA technology to bring laboratory-grade biometric data directly to athletes, fitness enthusiasts, and dieters.
As a low weight portable device, PUMA can be used at the gym, out on a run, or anywhere the user brings it. This wearable device monitors metabolic and cardiovascular data while users are training or at rest.
Then it will synchronize with the user’s smartphone, tablet, or laptop, providing insight on a range of training and dieting metrics like oxygen consumption, respiratory quotient, and energy substrate utilization. These metrics can guide users and trainers on exercise and diet plans, help dieters to lose weight, and recreational athletes to optimize athletic performance.
“NASA Glenn’s PUMA technology is now finding broader application in the marketplace,” reports Kim Dalgleish-Miller, Chief of the Glenn Technology Transfer Office. “It is always exciting to see the technology the center has invented being transformed into economic and business opportunities.”
Go to http://technology-grc.ndc.nasa.gov to learn more about Glenn’s Technology Transfer Office. For more information on Startup NASA, visit http://technology.nasa.gov/startup