Electronic skin patches

Imagine a flexible digital screen that heals itself when it cracks, or a light-emitting robot that locates survivors in dark, dangerous environments or carries out farming and space exploration tasks. A novel material developed could turn these ideas into reality.

This article is a summary of the latest considerations for the wearable technology industry as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, including background on the pandemic, case studies of it's impact, and a discussion around changes to quantitative forecasts across IDTechEx's wearable portfolio as a result.

Researchers have developed ultra-light tattoo electrodes that are hardly noticeable on the skin and make long-term measurements of brain activity cheaper and easier.

The e-skin, made from soft, flexible rubber, can be embedded with sensors that monitor information like heart rate, body temperature, levels of blood sugar and metabolic byproducts that are indicators of health, and even the nerve signals that control our muscles. It does so without the need for a battery, as it runs solely on biofuel cells powered by one of the body's own waste products.

A wearable smart patch will deliver precision data to help people personalise their diets and reduce their risk of developing lifestyle-related chronic diseases like Type 2 diabetes.

Conductive ink business is inherently wonderfully diverse. This has allowed the industry to rejuvenate itself time and time again and to remain very relevant through generations of product lifecycles.

French scientists at the Neel Institute have produced a graphene patch that records the condition of chronic wounds, such as ulcers suffered by the elderly or those with diabetes, at any time. The data can be sent from home to the hospital via mobile phone, facilitating a rapid response to possible infections.

Wearing a removable, adhesive patch sensor accurately predicted worsening heart failure and the need for hospitalization several days before heart failure hospitalization occurred among veterans with heart failure, according to research.

IDTechEx identifies top future technologies in healthcare. With demographic changes such as the aging of the population, they forecast there to be strong growth in technologies that help healthcare providers manage the growing burden on the healthcare system while maintaining high quality care.