The Chairolution has officially begun

11.03.2015

Last week the the venture leaders and venture kick winner of 2014 noonee has finalized the first field trial of their "chairolutionary" device: the Chairless Chair. The first company to test the prototypes was the leading German car manufacturer Audi. In the dynamic and fast paced manufacturing environment, the device received positive feedback from the first testers.

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CEO of noonee and the capitan of the Swiss National Startup Team 2014, Keith Gunura
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On Chairless Chair you are still using your muscles while sitting.
The Chairless Chair is a wearable ergonomic sitting support. The main application is for the production lines, where traditional sitting methods are not suitable and represent obstacles in the work area. With the Chairless Chair the users walk together with the support while wearing it, without obstructing the work space. When the users need to sit, they only need to press a button to lock a desired sitting angle. This enables workers to sit for short periods of time while working and provide body-weight assistance in strenuous situations thus reducing the effects on their leg muscles. The best part of the Chairless Chair is that you can balance on it yourself, therefore you are still using your muscles.

CEO of noonee and the capitan of the Swiss National Startup Team 2014, Keith Gunura, said: "The field trials mark a tremendous step toward the realisation of the Chairolution in both development and momentum. We and our partners made it happen, come rain come thunder! With the user feedback we collected we are now stepping up development of the Chairless Chair to bring it to an
amazing product that provides the support needed while working. Our target is that early Q1 2016 there will be a ready product to push forward the Chairolution. lnterested companies can register their interest by sending us an email, contact information is available on our website. l'm on a Chairless Chair."

Olga Motovilova, the CFO of noonee AG, said: "lt was one of the most exciting moments for us, when the very first tester with great ease started using the Chairless Chair in the extremely dynamic factory environment. Our hearts were definitely beating fast and when the user told us that the device works and he finds it great, we couldn't hide the smiles on our faces. We thank all of our partners, clients, suppliers, coaches, mentors, family and friends for their immense support and hard work! Now we just need to bring the Chairolution to the rest of the world! Who knows, maybe next time you come visit us, there will be only Chairless Chairs available in the meeting room."

The founder of the design consultancy working on the project, Marc Sapetti, was also present during the first trial: "We are satisfied with the results of the tests, the feedback we got from this real case scenario is essential to improve the device, its usability and comfort, and to bring the design to the next level. lt's been an interesting journey and we feel we've done a huge step towards Chairolution."

Apart from Sapetti design consultancy another official supporter and partner of noonee AG is the electronics developer Trenew Electronic AG, currently consulting the company in control systems.

Sitting without a chair supported by venture kick
The chairless chair ETH spin-off noonee won the venture kick final 2014. Their futuristic looking leg exoskeleton enables factory workers to relax their muscles and sit down during work - without the need for a chair. The lightweight mechatronic device helps to relieve the stress on leg muscles and joints. In the future it can reduce healthcare and associated costs. It is indeed a chair that walks with you. “venture kick really helped us focus our resources on what we had to do and also provide us some finances to develop the business. Without them we would have had a tough time travelling and marketing.” said Keith Gunura after the venture kick final in summer 2014.

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