Project Boundary uses Gimbal tech to encourage healthy choices

When we think of beacon technology, the upside is huge. Placed strategically throughout a building or other facility, beacons can push important information to your phone at the right time. Project Boundary, a new endeavor spearheaded by The Department of Health and Human Services, aims to improve your wellness in the workplace.

Using Gimbal beacons, Project Boundary will serve as a gentle reminder that you might want to take the stairs, or snatch a piece of fruit from the kitchenette. The scope of the project is to use gentle reminders at appropriate times to remind us to make smarter decisions about our health.

Project Boundary will also be an entry into the SmartAmerica challenge, a White House Presidential Innovation Fellow project, which aims to use technology to improve the "economy and daily lives of Americans". Helping with the initiative is Total Communicator Solutions' Smart Compass platform, which offers up smart, pointed notifications to the right people at the right time using beacon technology.

Though the initial aim is pretty simple, offering up gentle reminders to make good decisions throughout our day, Project Boundary could serve as a jumping-off point for bigger things. Some companies have initiative programs for employees staying healthy and active, and this could serve to help with programs such as that. The project team will also make a presentation at the SmartAmerica Expo on June 11 at the Washington DC Expo Center.