Wearable Technology

Researchers created a special ultrathin sensor, spun from gold, that can be attached directly to the skin without irritation or discomfort. The sensor can measure different biomarkers or substances to perform on-body chemical analysis. It works using a technique called Raman spectroscopy, where laser light aimed at the sensor is changed slightly depending on whatever chemicals are present on the skin at that point. The sensor can be finely tuned to be extremely sensitive, and is robust enough for practical use.

This premium article gives an overview of optical combiners and explores manufacturing methods for surface relief diffractive waveguides, with examples from key market players.

LetinAR is a South Korean developer of optical systems for augmented reality glasses. Its PinMR™ optical combiners are fabricated from plastic, offering cost and durability advantages. It recently built its own fabrication line near Seoul.

Ostendo is a Californian display technology firm. Its Quantum Photonic Imager microLED displays are well suited for augmented reality devices. IDTechEx met with the company at TechConnect World 2022.

Haptics 2023-2033: Technologies, Markets, and Players - Current and emerging technologies (ERM motors, LRAs, piezoelectric ceramics and polymers, surface haptics, SMAs, electroactive polymers, contactless haptics and thermal haptics), markets, forecasts, and players in haptics.

IDTechEx had the opportunity to try out Mojo Vision's prototype smart augmented reality contact lens at TechConnect 2022. The device is based around a tiny microLED display, with the demo giving insight into a possible future for AR.

Blood pressure is one of the most important indicators of heart health, but it's tough to frequently and reliably measure outside of a clinical setting. For decades, cuff-based devices that constrict around the arm to give a reading have been the gold standard. But now, researchers have developed an electronic tattoo that can be worn comfortably on the wrist for hours and deliver continuous blood pressure measurements at an accuracy level exceeding nearly all available options on the market today.

Wearable activity trackers that monitor changes in skin temperature and heart and breathing rates, combined with artificial intelligence, might be used to pick up COVID-19 infection days before symptoms start, suggests preliminary research.

DiaMonTech are developing pain-free glucose monitoring technology, using mid-infrared and photothermal detection technology.

Virtual Reality (VR) headsets are edging toward becoming commonplace. However, social acceptability is still some way off and the user experience is not entirely comfortable. Essential to solving these problems are the lenses that magnify and focus headsets' displays.

This premium article explores the TechConnect 2022 event, held from 13th-15th June near Washington DC. The event covered a wide range of technologies and this article will particularly focus on photonics, displays, and augmented reality, materials informatics and AI, and materials and electronics.

On June 20th 2022, Meta's Reality Labs showed off a range of its VR headset prototypes publicly for the first time, outlining its future path with VR optics and displays. This article covers its optics efforts.

A Finnish research group has developed a novel wearable for infants for the reliable assessment of motor abilities during early development. The smart jumpsuit is a wearable medical device equipped with multiple movement sensors, which assist in assessing and predicting children's neurological development.

This premium article explores the PRINSE'22 event. It will look into the most interesting and commercially relevant presentations from the event, with a focus on integrated electronics, manufacturing, wearable technology, and biological sensing.

A coach wearing a mixed-reality headset could receive real-time statistics and facial interpretation data to evaluate a player, while also interfacing with a team of analysts and trainers who work remotely and see the same information.

The creation of high-resolution extrusion printing—think 3D printing but with ink that conducts electricity—has enabled researchers to explore the potential of wearable human motion devices.

Based in Boston, MA, with 300 full-time employees globally, BrainCo is a tech start-up with three main brands: FocusCalm, BrainRobotics, and NeuroMaker. FocusCalm is a portable wireless brain-machine interface (BMI) wearable to improve users' attention level and help those affected with focus issues and learning difficulties. BrainRobotics develops EMG-controlled robotic prosthetic upper limbs. NeuroMaker adapts the company's BMI and prosthetic products into a STEM education kit.

Screentec is a contract development and manufacturing company (CDMO) for printed electronics, with a primary focus on medical/wellness devices. IDTechEx visited Screentec in person in June 2022.

Teslasuit is very excited to be launching its haptic glove later this year, which combines haptic feedback, force feedback, finger tracking and a biometric system to give the user an unparalleled and literal grasp of the human-to-digital interface.

The skin of cephalopods, such as octopuses, squids and cuttlefish, is stretchy and smart, contributing to these creatures' ability to sense and respond to their surroundings. A Penn State-led collaboration has harnessed these properties to create an artificial skin that mimics both the elasticity and the neurologic functions of cephalopod skin, with potential applications for neurorobotics, skin prosthetics, artificial organs and more.