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Melory So holds an RFID
card up to a digital
reader, as she races through a course at the playground created by SmartUs and Playmotion
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Melory So barely notices the steamy heat of a late-summer afternoon in Hong Kong. The nine-year-old, along with about a dozen other children, is too busy racing against thousands of other kids around the world – on a new “digital playground.”
“This game is more active. When you’re playing a computer game, you just sit there and use the mouse,” says Melory.
The first facility of its kind in Asia, the SmartUs playground combines traditional playground equipment with digital technology. Children in the play area use Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) smart cards, similar to those used by Hong Kong commuters.
Valerie Pang and Ching-Ching Chan demonstrate one of the games, in which a computer displays a map they try to memorise before racing to tap their cards on a series of posts, each with a picture they must match in order. The obstacle course challenges their bodies as well as their brains, but the children say they show up because the playground is fun.
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Children use the SmartUs computer terminal to tally up scores for comparison with those recorded at other playgrounds around the world
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“With this, we can run and run, and use our brain!” says Ching-Ching, before rushing off to try another challenge. Later, the children will sit down at a laptop computer and log onto a designated website, where they will find their records and rankings.
Switched On
Lappset Group, which designed the SmartUs playground, is counting on the language of learning to keep bringing kids back. The Finnish company’s Asia-Pacific Director, Joakim Heino, says the games are designed to develop motor skills, muscle control, hand-to-eye coordination, memory, strategies and even math skills. The company wanted to find a way to keep children “switched on” during outdoor play.
“In every country, children are playing outdoors less than before. The whole idea with SmartUs is to bring the kids out again. So, after they play here, they can go home on their computer and compare their scores. Then, they can say, ‘Hey, today I’m number one worldwide, or I’m number 102,” says Mr Heino.
More than 70 installations have already been set up in 17 regions and countries worldwide. At least 20 more digital playgrounds will go online by the end of the year, with several planned next year on the Chinese mainland, South Korea and Japan.
Wired City
“We identified Hong Kong as one of the best spots to start here in Asia,” says Mr Heino. “One reason is that children here are under pressure from an early age to learn something. Often, that ends up being passive learning. We want to study how active learning affects these kids.”
Lappset and its Hong Kong partners hope that the Hong Kong pilot project will help improve the equipment, making it more relevant to children in the region – and anywhere else kids connect with it online.
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Asia’s first digital playground is based in Hong Kong Cyberport
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Cyberport, the digital community hosting the new playground, hopes that the project will lead to the sharing of kids’ entertainment content between Asia and Europe. The playground was seen as a perfect addition to the US$2 billion project, operated by Hong Kong Cyberport Management Company Ltd and wholly owned by the Hong Kong Government. Cyberport’s primary aim is to focus on enterprise and professional development, and help commercialise creative ideas and incubate start-ups.
“I think this is a great opportunity for us to bring east and west together in a harmonious environment,” says Dr David Chung, Cyberport’s head of information technology operations.
That vision is shared by Andrew Pang, Managing Director of Lappset’s local partner – Playmotion by Leovation. “We have Chinese games that help expat kids teach themselves, and the local kids can learn English at the same time,” says Mr Pang, who spent a year overseeing work to tailor the equipment and software to local tastes.
Mr Pang is convinced that the SmartUs concept is a business with a bright future.
“China is on the rise economically and in terms of education,” he says, predicting a future when SmartUs playground technology will no longer just be for kids.
“The bigger picture is to find different categories, such as indoor playgrounds or even the elderly market. When it comes to children and senior citizens, that’s one thing they have in common – they all want to play.”
Related Links
Cyberport
Lappset Group Ltd
Playmotion by Leovation
