The Nabu uses a 3-axis accelerometer to detect your motion. An accelerometer is a device that turns movement (acceleration) of a body into digital measurements (data) when attached to the body. By analyzing acceleration data, the Nabu can provide detailed information about frequency, duration, intensity, and patterns of movement to determine your steps taken, distance traveled, calories burned, and sleep pattern. The 3-axis implementation allows the accelerometer to measure your motion in any way that you move, making its activity measurements more precise than older, single-axis pedometers.
The Nabu uses a complex algorithm designed to look for indicative motion patterns for step counting. One condition for a motion pattern to be recognized as a step is to set a threshold.
- If a motion and its subsequent acceleration measurement data meet the threshold, the motion will be counted as a step.
- If that threshold is not met, the algorithm won’t count the motion as a step.
Note: Other factors can create enough acceleration to meet the threshold and therefore cause some over counting of steps, such as riding on a bumpy road. Equally, it's possible for the algorithm to undercount or not meet the required acceleration threshold.
