Mirror Me

Overview: This IoT device connects a mirror and a scale such that the user can step on the scale while standing in front of the mirror and the data collected from the scale and mirror are sent to the user's smartphone to give the user an analysis of his/her physical health. Embedded into the mirror is a camera that takes a photo of the user. This photo is then analyzed with computer vision and combined with the scale's data to provide the user with a brief report of his/her physical fitness. This device is integrated with a smartphone application to allow the user to document their physical fitness over time. The device is great for anyone looking to monitor their physical health or track their progress as they work toward becoming more fit. The user interface is simple and intuitive. The user steps on the scale and looks in the mirror and presses a button on their phone to take the photo. This photo is then sent to the cloud to be analyzed with computer vision to provide the user with feedback. 

Benefits: This device is great for any fitness fanatic because all that is necessary is stepping on the scale, looking in the mirror, and pressing a button on your phone. The data collected from the scale and mirror is then automatically synced to your phone and sent to the cloud for analysis.

Dangers: Because the photo analysis happens on the cloud rather than locally, there is a lot of vulnerability during data transmission. There is a lot of opportunity for hackers to intercept the photos. While this is not one of the most pressing IoT security concerns because we are not dealing with extremely sensitive information like social security numbers or bank accounts, it is very unsettling to think that a stranger could possess a private photo of you without your knowledge.

Recommendations: Some improvements to this device could be to store all information locally; however, the reason the cloud is necessary is so the software necessary for the image analysis does not need to be on every device. Having the software stored only on the cloud and sending photos to the cloud to use the software makes each individual device cheaper. There could also be more customizable privacy options. Maybe a user could opt out of the image analysis and just have the scale and photo data locally and then the photo is purely a progress picture for the user to compare over time. The user could also choose to not automatically send information to the cloud and instead choose what information is sent and when.