Statsleeve

Statsleeve is a personal sports informatics system for improving basketball shooting percentage. While playing basketball, wear the Statsleeve textile user interface to collect your shooting statistics. After the game, sync your Statsleeve to a web-based dashboard to track your shooting stats, get customized coaching, and find local pick-up games.

I started with a vague product concept of a wearable device that could be used to help amateur basketball players keep track and improve their shooting performance. Using concepts from personal informatics design, I conceptualized a high-level user experience to support the product concept:

1. 1. Signal Measurement: sense and collect player statistics
2. 2. Behavior Change: motivate the player to improve their performance

First, I observed and played in pickup basketball games to create the core requirements for a wearable sensor. After a round of ideation and sketching, I defined the sensor interface features.

1. 1. Robust Sensing: The sensor must be robust to noisy data (shock, sweat, etc...)
   • » Use redundant sensors to ensure actual user input
2. 2. Low Cognitive Load: The sensor must be easy to use while playing
   • » "Squeeze to Stat" interaction scheme - squeeze forearm 2 (or 3) times to log a missed 2 (or 3)-point shot; squeeze bicep 2 (or 3) times to log a made 2 (or 3)-point shot
3. 3. Player Comfort: The sensor should be comfortable and unobtrusive
   • » Use soft, textile pressure sensors and conductive threading
4. 4. Fashionable: The sensor should look slick
   • » Embed the sensors in a basketball arm sleeve, a popular accessory used at all levels of play

The second part of the design was to make meaningful sense out of player stats to improve shooting. I was heavily influenced by the concepts from Chip & Dan Heath's Switch, information visualization, and game dynamics. I envisioned web-based dashboard that would influence behavior change for improving shooting:

1. 1. Direct the Rider: Appeal to the analytical side and provide clarity of the outcome.
   • » Visualize statistics - provide immediate feedback of their current performance
   • » Set and track goals - give players a sense of progress on their journey of improvement
2. 2. Motivate the Elephant: Engage emotions
   • » Player & Team achievements - offer rewards for individual performance and team cooperation
3. 3. Shape the Path: Create an environment that's inviting for shooting improvement
   • » Coach - provide encouraging, personal training based on past performance
   • » Virtual League - create a sense of cooperation and competition to increase playtime
   • » Find local games - lower the barrier to practicing by finding local pickup games