Wearable Technology

Researchers are working to overcome challenges in order to bring wearable, electric, wound-healing devices to clinical practice.

Medicine has relied on mechanical devices to help treat patients for decades. These devices have ranged in complexity from stents and shunts to dialysis machines and ventilators. As we settle into this age of data, the pressure to connect, control, instrument and analyze the operation of such devices and their impact on health has grown exponentially. After all, at a time when my watch can share heart rate and oxygen saturation, surely any physician-prescribed monitoring device should be able to provide relevant medical insight too?

Researchers have received a $1.5 million grant from the National Science Foundation to develop a robotic assistive device to help infants with movement difficulties. The soft wearable device will fit over little arms to support them or offer an extra boost in their movements.

Engineers have developed a new smart sensor platform for face masks that they are calling a "Fitbit for the face." Dubbed "FaceBit," the lightweight, quarter-sized sensor uses a tiny magnet to attach to any N95, cloth or surgical face mask.

Masks, social distancing, proper hygiene and ventilation can help reduce the transmission of COVID-19 in public places, but even with these measures, scientists have detected airborne SARS-CoV-2 in indoor settings. Now, researchers have developed a passive air sampler clip that can help assess personal exposure to SARS-CoV-2, which could be especially helpful for workers in high-risk settings, such as restaurants or health care facilities.

In a groundbreaking new study, researchers used a customized printer to fully 3D print a flexible organic light-emitting diode (OLED) display. The discovery could result in low-cost OLED displays in the future that could be widely produced using 3D printers by anyone at home, instead of by technicians in expensive microfabrication facilities.

Silk makes an important biomaterial, because it does not generate an immune response in humans and promotes the growth of cells. It has been used in drug delivery, and because the material is flexible and has favorable technological properties, it is ideal for wearable and implantable health monitoring sensors.

biped is the world's first AI copilot for blind and visually impaired people, bringing autonomous driving features to humans. It predicts your surroundings a few seconds ahead and generates intuitive feedback through spatial sounds.

Thursday 13 January 2022 - New Self-healing Materials Save Lives, Money, and the Planet. The webinar explains how this is a world of many materials including a lot of silicon polymers such as geopolymers and silicones. It involves many ionomers, hydrogels, polyurethanes, ionomers, epoxies and Diels-Alder polymers but much more besides.