The Development of a Real-Time Movement Sonification Exergame for Body-Weight Squat Training

Participating in physical activities is often difficult for individuals living with blindness or other visual impairments. The use of exergames has shown promise in affording these individuals engaging and novel methods for participation in physical activity. Specifically, movement sonification is one method shown to be reliable in providing guidance and helping users orient their bodies in space. Through this research we aim to develop an auditory-only exergame that provides augmented feedback, using a combination of verbal instruction and real-time movement sonification, for low to no vision users to learn to perform body-weight squat movements correctly and safely. We anticipate that this research will assist in further establishing the importance of movement sonification feedback for better exercise training and comprehension in physical activity when no visual input is present.