Smartboard, the tool for scientific training in climbing

The Smartboard is an intelligent training beam that allows you to characterize your physiological profile as a climber and to access individualized exercises. Already used by high-level athletes of the FFME, we are talking about it today because the big news is its sale to private climbing rooms and clubs. You should therefore be able to test it quickly in your favorite climbing rooms. What will this new beam bring you and how does it work? We explain all this in detail with a cross interview of the developers.

“Train smarter climb harder”

This is the maxim of the company of Dr Laurent Vigouroux, teacher-researcher in biomechanics and physiology at the University of Aix-Marseille, and his acolytes, Clément Lechaptois, graduate of a master's degree in theoretical mechanics but also a climber of high level, and Jérôme Delachanal, engineer in electronics and industrial computing as well as insatiable innovator. It is therefore a 100% French innovation resulting from scientific research and it is the first instrumented beam which makes it possible to calculate parameters on all of your abilities in the fingers, forearms and arms. High-level athletes already train with them within the FFME, so why not you?

The principle of the beam is to record the force exerted by the climber using sensors. These mechanical sensors are located at the rear of the beam and fixed directly to a vertical support (wall, training structure). They record in real time the force data applied to the beam, this data is sent directly to the application via Bluetooth. The beam itself with a bi-material assembly. The upper part made of PU resin with two big tubs to perform different arm closing exercises. The lower part consists of strips of different sizes in a wooden support to be able to modulate the evaluation and training exercises according to the level. Finally, the third part is essential for the proper functioning of this invention: it is the mobile application that accompanies your training on tablet (and very soon on smartphone). The app draws up the physiological profile of the climber and suggests other exercises to continue testing or training you. You can also create your own custom training sessions using the history of your previous sessions that it keeps in memory.

Laurent Vigouroux and Clément Lechaptois explain this invention a little more precisely and the challenges of such an innovation on the training of strong climbers, as well as beginners or intermediates wishing to evolve and climb harder!

Grimper Magazine: The news of Smartboard is the creation of the Start Up which aims to be able to distribute this smart training socket to major clubs and private rooms, right? Are the FFME Smartboards and those distributed to the general public different? Can the beam be purchased by an individual?

Laurent Vigouroux: The commercial version is the same as that of the FFME, although we continue to make improvements following the feedback we have on the beam, its sensors and the application. We also have a second version of the application for 2020 which will be much more intuitive for climbers and which can be installed on a smartphone. This will allow you to be guided in your training without necessarily being a trainer or a scientist with physiological or biomechanical knowledge.

Clément Lechaptois: Yes, that's exactly it! After the delivery of the first SmartBoards in the French poles of the FFME, our start-up was created in July and we are starting to market it. We primarily target venues and clubs, but it is also accessible to individuals. Do not hesitate to visit our website for additional information.

Grimper Magazine: Was the basic desire to help high-level climbers progress, or to offer a tool that is fun and usable by everyone, regardless of level?

Laurent Vigouroux: The idea of ​​“train smarter climb harder” and the SmartBoard is to use all available scientific knowledge and methods to help climbers progress. The idea may be a little scary at first, but if we draw a parallel with running, all runners know their heart rate or their VO2max and try to progress using tools that quantify performance (GPS, cardio, pedometers etc.). In climbing, a rather young sport, we are in the infancy of this approach and the progression is done empirically and often on sometimes unfounded generic advice. The SmartBoard allows you to get to know each other better and to offer individualized training based on a quantified evaluation of your own profile. So YES we are addressing the high level but YES we are also addressing all climbers who wish to progress whatever their level of practice from 4a to 9c!

Clément Lechaptois: One property of the SmartBoard that we hadn't considered at the beginning is that the visual feedback and obtaining scores makes the tool extremely fun. On our stand at the competitions, we have seen the enthusiasm of children, young people but also older people and families to just have fun with the SmartBoard without thinking about science or training. It was crazy, because we had queues and we sometimes had to close because we were exhausted from explaining the tool! Another anecdote: during development, we had a big problem stopping the days of working and testing prototypes with Laurent because we were launching into endless sessions, challenging each other and having fun! That's also what gave us a lot of new development ideas, and we still have some up our sleeves...

Grimper Magazine: We talk a lot about biomechanics and physiology, but these terms remain a little obscure, can you popularize?

Laurent Vigouroux: Biomechanics and physiology are the sciences that deal with the human body in motion. Their principle is to study the chemical and cellular phenomena of muscular functioning, the mechanics of the human body, muscular coordination, injuries, fatigue, performance... when one mobilizes one's body in daily life, in sport , at work or while climbing. They allow, for example, to understand why we observe arched pulley breaks, why you have the bottles after a lane, why a blockage at 90° may be harder than another angle, etc.

Clément Lechaptois: It is certain that science is scary and that under the terms “Watt” “Joules” “Percentage of endurance”… we can annoy people. But very simply, if I explain to you that to throw higher you need power in the arms and to achieve your project of 20 movements you need resistance, I am sure that speaks to you. We “only” quantify these metrics to tell you where you are and how you can improve. In addition, we try in the application to provide as many explanations as possible so that interested users can appropriate these terms.

Grimper Magazine: This is an unprecedented innovation in the world of climbing. How do you stand out from foreign competition?

Laurent Vigouroux: There is a general movement towards the instrumentation of walls and the digitization of climbing. We see the luminous and animated walls appear (Luxov, Moon Board), instrumented beams, bracelets, etc. It's a very favorable dynamic that we see positively. On the instrumented beams our position is to give a scientific pledge to our tool. The algorithms that we propose have been developed in the laboratory for 5 years and are the result of the research that I have been carrying out for more than 18 years! The idea is not “only” to instrument the beam, it is above all to give rich and coherent information to the climber. We have chosen not to downgrade our tool to low-cost: the SmartBoard is as precise as a lab tool. What we don't want is to be put on the shelves of connected gadgets that we see appearing in all areas. For this we must be based on science but also know how to transmit our information pedagogically.

Clément Lechaptois: I think we are the most comprehensive tool available. Compared to the competition, we offer measurement but also data processing and their translation into useful live scores. We also offer a full assessment of the arms, forearms of climbers and not just finger fatigue or just a curve that moves when I pull. This is what makes the richness of our product I think. There is also a lot of modularity because the informed user can program his own sessions or extract his data while keeping a more “playful” level without worrying. I think that the tool that we are offering can be used as well by relentless climbers, as by young people, and beginner climbers in training, and that is also its strength. It's not just for strong climbers.

Grimper Magazine: Can science save the French climbing team at the Tokyo 2020 or Paris 2024 Olympic Games?

Laurent Vigouroux: (laughs) If there was an ultimate tool for “winning medals” it would be known and it would no longer be sport! Fortunately, climbing is much richer and more complex than the physio and biomechanical parameters. Of course, we can contribute but it is only a stone in the edifice of a complete approach that we can progress. We continue to work with the FFME on research projects and I believe that it is in such a movement, associating sport and science, that we can generally progress and ultimately win a medal. With Paul Dewilde, I have the impression that things are moving and that the FFME is taking this turn, to be followed.

Clément Lechaptois: Mika Mawem is already qualified and we therefore have a chance! The SmartBoard brings an additional approach which is rich and interesting for athletes training at a high level.

Grimper Magazine: In the future, what are your ambitions? Are you going to continue to develop La Smartboard on third-party applications, or do you have other inventions in the bag?

Laurent Vigouroux: For the moment we want to give access to the SmartBoard to as many climbers as possible! This is why we target climbing places such as halls, clubs, etc. As a researcher, it is the desire to modestly influence the course of our sport towards a practice where we ask ourselves more questions and where we try to understand our body through climbing. Climbing is such a rewarding sport that it is a chance for any climber to better understand themselves and improve physically, but also mentally and psychologically (I take this opportunity to refer those who are interested in this approach to the special number Grimper 183 that I wrote 2 years ago). For now, our priorities are exclusively on the SmartBoard to make it a beautiful tool that is part of the climber's environment.

Clément Lechaptois: The period is a bit crazy! As we progress, we realize that the SmartBoard has enormous potential. We want to work on the prevention of pathologies, on coordination, on training protocols, etc. We have ideas and opportunities in all directions but we have to make choices and deal with priorities: for the moment we have to make our activity sustainable and establish ourselves firmly in France, in Europe and elsewhere. ! But this is only the beginning of the adventure!

Smartboard website