You can now workout while flying through space. Icaros is a workout station that lets you exercise while simulating adventures such as: exploring space, flying through the Amazons, going on a deep sea dive and many more. Icarus uses a virtual reality headsetto help you get a healthy workout while traveling through a dream.
Johannes Scholl, HYVE Innovative Designer and Icaros developer calls it: “bodytainment.”
You control your flight path and explorations with the movement of the body. The trick is to maintain your balance and not to crash, which requires quick reflexes and a keen sense of balance and coordination.
According to Scholl, though it looks easy, it requires training to perform well:
“While doing your left/right and up/down moves, you train primarily shoulders and back. Also, your abs and your lateral abdominal muscles are trained intensively. It burns calories.”
The complete Icaros setup comes in four parts: the machine itself, Virtual Reality goggles, a desktop and a smartphone. The smartphone measures the pitch and angle of your movements, and sends it to the PC app, which runs a variety of visual environments for you to experience. You can explore beautiful landscapes, fly in space or surf waves—the possibilities are limitless.
The German design team from HYVE conceived the Icaros in 2012 as a way to realize their dreams of flying, and to combine it with an exercise machine that engages and motivates. They have completed a first working prototype at their design office in Munich. The team plans on starting a crowdfunding campaign to bring the Icaros into your life this summer.
