by Ping Ping, lets you practice slipping and dodging incoming punches and kicks without causing brain damage
Nattakit Tankongchamruskul (Ping Ping), a 17-year-old 12th grader from Ruamrudee International School Bangkok and the developer of the Dodgebox AR app, says of his invention: “Dodgebox is an augmented reality application used to train boxers to practice head slips – a boxing term meaning head dodges. It is fun, safe, and accessible. My inspiration came from my love for this sport: I train boxing at Sathian Muaythai Gym on a regular basis. One day, I had the opportunity to spar with an opponent, but I ended up getting knocked. As a grown adolescent, I felt lightheaded. Imagine how that would be for the other smaller kids at the gym.
“Then I read in the news about a 13-year old boy named Anucha Tasako, or Lek, who had been boxing to earn extra cash to support his family and pay for his studies. Orphaned as a child, he was raised by his uncle. During one bout, he received a hard punch to the face and head and was knocked out. Lek was rushed to the hospital, but it was already too late. He died on 10 November 2018 due to a brain haemorrhage. That made me realise just how dangerous boxing can be and that it can result in death.”
“A bit later, I came across an article written by a medical professor who had studied brain damage in children practicing MuayThai. Because their bodies are not as strong as adults, head guards are not enough to save them from brain injuries. With more research, I learned that the best way to prevent traumatic head injuries from boxing is, frankly, to practice avoiding the punches in the first place. That’s why I developed Dodgebox: to allow boxers to train to dodge punches and kicks. I hope this will help reduce the impact of brain injuries.”
“In total, the game has four levels, ranging from the easiest to the most difficult, with varying scores. For the Easy level, the full score is 18. For the Normal level, the highest score is 39, while for the Height level, the maximum score is 54. Lastly, in the Insane level, players can get up to 73 points.”
“The more difficult it is, the higher the score the player should get. That’s why each score is not rounded up. The timing is the same for all the modes. In some modes, the scoring is based on the difficulty for each pose and is randomly generated, or based on the speed which varies,” Ping Ping adds.
The Dodgebox is available for download from Apple Store at: https:// apps.apple.com/th/app/dodgebox-ar/id1536945666; and Google Play at: https:// play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.asus4.tfliteunitysample. To learn more, visit dodgebox.fit. For more information, write to: dodgebox.fit@gmail.com.
