… During Apple’s fiscal fourth-quarter conference call, Cook referred to the new business “wearables.” And though Apple doesn’t break out financial results for the wearables category as it does with the iPhone or iPad businesses, Cook dropped a revealing clue about the size of this growing business.
“Our entire wearables business was up 75% year-over-year in the fourth quarter and in fiscal 2017 already generated the annual revenue of a Fortune 400 company,” Cook said.
Sleep watches, actigraphs and fitness trackers all have different names and different brands, but all claim to do the same thing — measure sleep. In 1973 (the year the very first cell phone call was made) Daniel Kripke, at the University of California San Diego, created the first actigraph or sleep watch — the first “wearable”. It was designed as a research tool.
The concept was that excessive wrist motion meant poor sleep. Proving this is much more complicated.
The Apple Watch, Fitbit and other popular wearable trackers today can monitor steps, heart rate, and even sleep.
But what will they be able to do in five years?
These technology companies are in a race to develop new biosensors that can track a whole lot more about the human body.The hope is that a new wave of technologies would open up more opportunities to detect medical problems like abnormal heart rhythms, using consumer-friendly devices that people will be comfortable wearing everyday.
Here’s what’s coming next, according to 3 biomedical experts interviewed by CNBC.
The Suunto Spartan Sport Wrist HR Baro—the latest new release from Suunto—packs an insane amount of technology into a (relatively) small 46-gram package. Whether your training for a big race like the Grand Traverse, making backcountry laps in near white-out conditions, or hitting the local hill, the updated Spartan has technology to augment the experience.
Navigate like a pro, thanks to the 46-millimeter color touchscreen that makes maneuvering with the built-in GPS straightforward and easy, and the FusedAlti technology that makes the GPS even more accurate than in previous models. GPS and barometric data are used in conjunction for extra-accurate weather and altitude information, and a Valencell PerformTek optical (loosely translated as fancy, high-performing) heart rate sensor reads your heart rate from your wrist.
… here are three key considerations that vendors need to make during the R&D process for these to successfully be integrated into day-to-day use in the hospital for both physicians and patients.
What’s the End Goal?
Connected Sensing is not something that was developed by accident—it stemmed from a growing need for a deeper understanding of patients’ needs that were failing to be acknowledged. With 44 percent of the general population surveyed in the Philips 2017 Future Health Index stating that a recommendation from a healthcare profession would be their deciding factor in adopting connected care technology such as a wearable, patients are looking to their physicians and their health systems for guidance during the digital health revolution.
If you love gadgets so much that you imagine a future where even your wardrobe is connected, but you’re irritated by current offerings that still include chunky electronics, don’t give up hope just yet.
Researchers at the University of Washington are trying to simplify so-called smart fabrics by focusing on magnetized textiles that can store small amounts of data readable by a magnetometer, including the ones inside most smartphones. It’s potentially useful for invisibly labeling your stuff, or using a shirt or bracelet in place of a password or key card. The researchers also used magnetized thread embroidered into gloves as a gesture controller for the phone, without need for any electronics or batteries on the fabric itself.
Several projects were awarded a total of $565,000 from the University of Pittsburgh for wearable technology ideas addressing health care problems.
As part of the Pitt Innovation Challenge, 13 teams competed at the final pitch event, with three receiving $100,000 to $125,000, including:
MOVISU-Fit, a mobile gait-training system for lower limb amputees that provides real-time visual feedback from an integrated sensor in the prosthetic limb.
Forget fingerprint computer identification or retinal scanning. A University at Buffalo-led team has developed a computer security system using the dimensions of your heart as your identifier.
The system uses low-level Doppler radar to measure your heart, and then continually monitors your heart to make sure no one else has stepped in to run your computer.
Today Polar announced the ability for app developers to access data within Polar Flow, via their new ‘Polar Open AccessLink’ API. An API (Application Programming Interface) is what allows applications and platforms across the internet to communicate with each other. For example, when you upload a workout to Polar and that magically pushes it to Strava, Polar is using Strava’s API’s. The same goes for when Zwift or TrainerRoad upload to TrainingPeaks – they’re using TrainingPeak’s API’s.
… Every year, I have grand ambitions of finally hitting a 7-minute mile—it’s a huge reach, but I tell myself that I could get there if I just work at it. Then, after a few achy (and achingly slow) runs, I end up putting my sneakers away in defeat. The thing is, while I have every intention to learn how to run quickly and efficiently (and actually feel good doing it) I’ve never known where to start. When I heard about a recently released virtual run coaching system called Vi Fitness, I was immediately hopeful that the gadget might be able to help me out.
Vi Fitness is comprised of a pair of biometrics-sensing earphones and an app on your phone. The earbuds themselves measure your heart rate and include an accelerometer and gyroscope for tracking your motion (it’s basically an in-ear fitness tracker). When you go for a run, the app’s built-in AI coach, a disembodied female personality named Vi, kicks in to help you improve your stride, endurance, speed, and other metrics. Vi Fitness currently costs $199—pricey, but around the same cost as a high-end pair of wireless earbuds, and vastly cheaper than a human coach.
For one month, I wore a pair of Vi Fitness earbuds every time I went for a run to see if it could teach me to run at a quicker, more consistent pace. And it actually worked.
As winter fast approaches, skiers and snowboarders are priming their equipment and getting ready to hit slopes across the United States, they’re bringing a sensor, companion app and artificial intelligence along for the ride.
Trace, which provides these solutions, may be getting a boost thanks to a sizable investment by Intel Capital, it was announced Thursday. Intel Capital, the investing arm of the ubiquitous tech company, spread $60 million across 15 data-focused companies.
Trace, based in Los Angeles uses a small sensor that tracks activity for snow sports, water sports and more recently soccer in order to deliver performance insights.
… A collaboration between scientists at the Air Force Research Laboratory and Harvard University’s Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering has resulted in a new method for digital design and printing of stretchable, flexible electronics. The process, called Hybrid 3-D printing, uses additive manufacturing to integrate soft, conductive inks with a material substrate to create stretchable, wearable electronic devices.
“This is the first time a 3-D printer has been shown, in a single process, to print stretchable sensors with integrated microelectronic components,” said Dr. Dan Berrigan, a research scientist at the AFRL Materials and Manufacturing Directorate. “Starting from nothing, the printer builds an entire stretchable circuit that blends the mechanical durability of printed components with the robust performance of off-the-shelf electronics.”
A new type of soft and stretchable sensor could find uses in applications ranging from athletics and health monitoring to prosthetics and virtual reality.
The technology, called iSoft, is capable of sensing in real-time, or without delay, and can perform “multimodal” sensing, or sensing a variety of stimuli such as continuous contact and stretching in all directions.
“The novel part of iSoft is that it does not need any wiring or electronics within the material,” said Karthik Ramani, Purdue University’s Donald W. Feddersen Professor of Mechanical Engineering and director of the C Design Lab. “The platform provides the ability to create and customize soft sensors. Even if you have no professional knowledge of electronics you can modify any object with it, including objects with complex shapes.”
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, The Daily Illini from
With new gadgets like Fitbits and smartwatches, wearable technology’s presence in society is on the rise.
Melissa Littlefield, professor of English, kinesiology and community health at the University, understands the importance of neuroscience. The goal of her research is to bring the hard sciences, social sciences and humanities into a conversation about neuroscientific advancements. Lately, her focus has been on EEG wearable technology.
She recently finished writing a book, Instrumental Intimacy: EEG Wearables and Neuroscientific Control, in which she discusses society’s obsession with this new technology, and its promises and drawbacks.
Jonathan Rothberg, a entrepreneur who prides himself on drastically disrupting the biomedical industry every so often, has typically big claims for his new product. The Butterfly iQ, a cheap handheld ultrasound tool with AI smarts tucked inside, will 1) revolutionize medical imaging in hospitals and clinics, 2) change the game in global health, and 3) eventually become a consumer product that will be as ubiquitous as the household thermometer, he says.
Today, Rothberg’s startup Butterfly Network unveiled the tool and announced its FDA clearance for 13 clinical applications, including cardiac scans, fetal and obstetric exams, and musculoskeletal checks. Rather than using a dedicated piece of hardware for the controls and image display, the iQ works with the user’s iPhone. The company says it will start shipping units in 2018 at an initial price of about $2,000.
Announced at CES 2017 in January, Sensoria has it has finally opened pre-orders for its smart running shoe. To mark the occasion they will be available for $99, around 50% off the regular retail price.
The Redmond Based startup has been in the smart apparel and footwear business for three years now. The company is perhaps best known for its smart fitness sock. The garment connects to a lightweight anklet and is infused with 100% textile pressure sensors which provide users with real-time information such as cadence and foot landing technique
Ski companies are starting to ask real women what they want out of their equipment.
It’s a crisp fall day in Park City, Utah, and a handful of ski industry veterans—primarily women, from a variety of backgrounds—are gathered around a table discussing their feet. Or, more specifically, their feet in ski boots—how boots should fit, their stance and positioning on their skis, and the variety of women’s calf sizes.
Drop Manufacturing has debuted a new online concept that brings the brand’s progressive design, high-performance technical innovation and years of industry experience direct to outdoor enthusiasts around the country at the best possible prices.
These days, the long hours spent charging our wearables and gadgets represent the most significant amount of time we spend away from them. Portable chargers have already started to fill that powerless void. Now, it looks as though technology developed at Brunel University London could keep devices running for longer.
With the help of readily available household supplies and a 3D printer, scientists at Brunel have devised a flexible, wearable battery that can be implanted into a plastic wristband. The technique opens the door for experimental wearable designs that could provide a handy source power for phones, medical implants and more.
A small study published in the Journal of the American Osteopathic Association found that people who took group exercise classes reported less stress and more physical, emotional and mental health benefits than those who exercised alone or did not hit the gym at all, suggesting that a social atmosphere may compound the already numerous benefits of physical activity.
At the University of New England College of Osteopathic Medicine, 69 people in their first or second year of medical school—typically a very stressful time—were recruited for the study. One group of students did at least one 30-minute core training class together each week; another exercised alone or with one or two other people at least twice a week; and a third didn’t engage in any physical activity beyond walking or biking for transportation. Students were allowed to choose their own group.
… So far, nothing suggests that a bacteria in a probiotic could potentially alter your game on a par with performance-enhancing drugs, says Gregor Reid, a veteran researcher at the Western University in Ontario. But several studies have linked specific bacterial strains with improved recovery times or reduced incidence of illness after an athletic event, and Reid says it’s clear that “in the future, athletic performance and recovery may be aided by microbes.”
… Still, as the example of Lance Armstrong Human makes clear, sometimes exercise alone is not enough. When Evans began giving 516 to laboratory mice that regularly used an exercise wheel, he found that, after just four weeks on the drug, they had increased their endurance—how far they could run, and for how long—by as much as seventy-five per cent. Meanwhile, their waistlines (“the cross-sectional area,” in scientific parlance) and their body-fat percentage shrank; their insulin resistance came down; and their muscle-composition ratio shifted toward so-called slow-twitch fibres, which tire slowly and burn fat, and which predominate in long-distance runners. In human terms, this would be like a Fun-Run jogger waking up with the body of Mo Farah. Evans published his initial results in the journal Cell, in 2008. This year, he showed that, if his cookie-dough-scarfing mice were allowed to exercise, the ones that had been given 516 for eight weeks could run for nearly an hour and half longer than their drug-free peers. “We can replace training with a drug,” he said.