Flexible hybrid electronics (FHE) is an innovative technology that combines performance of semiconductor devices with the flexibility and low cost of printed plastic film substrates. FHE allows manufacturers to develop a new category of electronics, such as sensors that are lighter in weight, conform to the curves of a human body or stretch across the shape of an object or structure – all while preserving the full operational integrity of traditional electronic architectures.

Related Wireless, Soft, Flexible Sensors Show Promise in Monitoring Premature Babies

The FHE market was valued at USD 82 million in 2018 and is expected to reach USD 198.9 million by 2024, registering a CAGR of 16.2% over the forecast period of (2019-2024). Automotive, electronics, the Internet of Things (IoT), wearables, and other emerging chip markets are expected to provide growth opportunities for flexible hybrid electronics market, which often share manufacturing processes and materials with semiconductors, according to ReportLinker.

In 2019, Nextflex had 90 corporate members and 28 Educational Institutes. Nextflex facilitated about 62 million of investments from 2015 to 2019, making it the biggest agency to invest in this technology.

FHE is making a significant impact in various markets, with the automotive sector providing substantial opportunities. Whether it is sensors, OLED displays, and lighting, in-mold electronics, printed heaters or other applications, hence the market is expected to witness massive opportunities for flexible electronics in the automotive industry.

Asia is emerging as a vital and essential region for the development of FHE, particularly in the manufacturing of advanced semiconductor products. Most countries in Asia have a steady growth of the market, in particular, ones in East Asia (China, Japan, Taiwan, South Korea, Singapore).

Related Royole’s Ultra-Thin Flexible Display Shows Promise for Foldable Smartphones of the Future

Asia-pacific region has the most advanced and proficient technical approach to design and manufacture devices for fast-growing markets including IoT, environmental sensing, wearable applications, flexible displays, and others.

WT | Wearable Technologies Conference in San Francisco on July 9-10

The most innovative wearables event will be back on July 9-10 in beautiful San Francisco at SEMICON West to celebrate the 34th edition of the WT | Wearable Technologies Conference Series. Topics include data analytics in professional sports, prevention, treatment and rehabilitation with wearables, the future of digital health, medication and adherence, smart patches, workflow optimization and workforce safety and much more – featuring international leaders and experts of the wearables industry´s biggest names including Abbott, Autodesk, Datwyler, Kopin, Maxim Integrated, Multek, NFLPA, Omron, SharkDreams, Qualcomm, and many more. Register now to be part of #WTUS19

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Heart disease is the leading cause of death for both men and women. About 610,000 people die of heart disease in the United States every year–that’s 1 in every 4 deaths. To prevent or treat heart disease, regular monitoring of heart is important for people patients suffering from or at risk of heart disease. However, current procedures to monitor heart disease means the patient needs to go to the doctor’s office simply to get an ECG. Moreover, electrocardiograph (ECG) readings alone aren’t accurate enough for determining heart health, but they provide additional information when combined with Seismocardiography (SCG) signal recordings.

Related Scientists Create New Stretchable, Wearable Sensor from Chewing Gum

To solve this problem, scientists have been developing wearable sensors that patients can use to keep track of their heart health over time. But many of these devices have been cumbersome or uncomfortable. Now, researchers from the University of Texas at Austin have designed a lightweight wearable material that could make heart health monitoring easier and more accurate than the existing ECG machines. The research team was led by Nanshu Lu in the Cockrell School of Engineering, reports UT News.

The new electronic tattoo (e-tattoo) is a graphene-based wearable device that can be placed on the skin to measure a variety of body responses, from electrical to biomechanical signals.

The device is so lightweight and stretchable that it can be placed over the heart for extended periods with little or no discomfort. It also measures cardiac health in two ways, taking electrocardiograph and seismocardiograph readings simultaneously. SCG is a measurement technique using chest vibrations associated with heartbeats. Powered remotely by a smartphone, the e-tattoo is the first ultrathin and stretchable technology to measure both ECG and SCG, said UT News report.

“We can get much greater insight into heart health by the synchronous collection of data from both sources,” said Lu, an associate professor in the departments of Aerospace Engineering and Engineering Mechanics and Biomedical Engineering.

Related UC-Berkeley Researchers Develop Flexible Sensor to Map Blood-Oxygen Levels Across the Body

Lu and her team are already working on improvements to data collection and storage for the device, as well as ways to power the e-tattoo wirelessly for longer periods. They recently developed a smartphone app that not only stores the data safely but can also show a heart beating on the screen in real time.

The research team reported on their newest e-tattoo in a recent issue of Advanced Science.

WT | Wearable Technologies Conference in San Francisco on July 9-10

The most innovative wearables event will be back on July 9-10 in beautiful San Francisco at SEMICON West to celebrate the 34th edition of the WT | Wearable Technologies Conference Series. Topics include data analytics in professional sports, prevention, treatment and rehabilitation with wearables, the future of digital health, medication and adherence, smart patches, workflow optimization and workforce safety and much more – featuring international leaders and experts of the wearables industry´s biggest names including Abbott, Autodesk, Datwyler, Kopin, Maxim Integrated, Multek, NFLPA, Omron, SharkDreams, Qualcomm, and many more. Register now to be part of #WTUS19

Scientists often take inspiration from nature when developing new materials. For example, octopus and mollusks can be excellent specimens of adhesive technology because their technique beats human scientists. Now, a team of scientists from South Korea’s Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology (DGIST) have developed a new waterproof, wearable biosensor that can stick to the skin in a unique way.

Related Wearable Biosensors Help Wound Healing Process by Mimicking Skin

For a wearable sensor to be truly effective, it must adhere fully to the skin. This means being flexible, staying attached when the skin is wet or dry, and working well even if there’s a lot of hair growing. Thus, the choice of substrate, the material that the sensing compounds rest upon, is crucial. Woven yarn is a popular substrate, but it sometimes doesn’t fully contact the skin, especially if that skin is hairy. Typical yarns and threads are also vulnerable to wet environments. Adhesives can lose their grip underwater, and in dry environments they can be so sticky that they can be painful when peeled off. To overcome these challenges, Changhyun Pang, Changsoon Choi and colleagues worked to develop a low-cost, graphene-based sensor with a yarn-like substrate that uses octopus-like suckers to adhere to skin, reports American Chemical Society.

An elastic polyurethane and polyester fabric was coated with graphene oxide and then soaked in L-ascorbic acid to aid in conductivity while still retaining its strength and stretch. Next, the scientists added a coating of a graphene and poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) film to form a conductive path from the fabric to the skin. Finally, they etched tiny, octopus-like patterns on the film. The sensor could detect a wide range of pressures and motions in both wet and dry environments. The device also could monitor an array of human activities, including electrocardiogram signals, pulse and speech patterns, demonstrating its potential use in medical applications, the researchers say.

Related Maxim MAX86150: The First Ever Integrated PPG and ECG Biosensor Module for Wearables

The team is eyeing the sensor’s use for not only personal health monitoring but also for potential new and innovative medical applications both externally and internally.

“Our approach has opened up a new possibility for wearable and skin-adherent electronic fabric sensors working even in wet environments for health-care monitoring and medical applications in vitro and in vivo,” the researchers wrote.

WT | Wearable Technologies Conference in San Francisco on July 9-10

The most innovative wearables event will be back on July 9-10 in beautiful San Francisco at SEMICON West to celebrate the 34th edition of the WT | Wearable Technologies Conference Series. Topics include data analytics in professional sports, prevention, treatment and rehabilitation with wearables, the future of digital health, medication and adherence, smart patches, workflow optimization and workforce safety and much more – featuring international leaders and experts of the wearables industry´s biggest names including Abbott, Autodesk, Datwyler, Kopin, Maxim Integrated, Multek, NFLPA, Omron, SharkDreams, Qualcomm, and many more. Register now to be part of #WTUS19

A growing demand for Flexible Printed Circuit (FPC) products from wearables, intelligent cars and drones, will push the FPC market to hit $16.642 billion in 2025, with a CAGR of 5.5% between 2018 and 2025, according to Global and China Flexible Printed Circuit (FPC) Industry Report, 2019-2025. FPC products are used in smartphones and tablet PC for display, touch control, fingerprint recognition, etc.

Read more Body- Hugging Elastic Printed Circuit Board Allows Measurement of Heart and Lung Function Directly on the Skin

In 2018, smartphone, tablet PC and ordinary computers accounted for around 39.8%, 15.8% and 9.1% of FPC market, separately, while communications and automotive electronics took a combined 14.6% or so. New energy vehicles will be a new hotspot on FPC industry chain, and the demand from emerging markets like automotive electronics will be conducive to the growth of the FPC industry. It is predicted that automobile will command 17.8% of FPC market in 2025, says a press release.

China still leads the world in FPC output value in spite of small scale of its FPC vendors.

By and large, Nippon Mektron as the largest flexible board vendor in the world performed poorly in 2016 due to the downturn in smartphone market before vigorously developing technologies and flexible substrates for manufacturing automotive FPC in 2017.

Read more Researchers Create 3-D Printed Glucose Biosensor for Wearable Monitors

Inter Flex that supplies the most FPCs for iPhone, produced flexible copper clad laminates (FCCL) using the technology of Cu sputtering deposition on PI films, and FPCs with I-Soft substrates manufactured by semi-additive process (SAP) over the past few years.

WT | Wearable Technologies Conference in San Francisco on July 9-10

The most innovative wearables event will be back on July 9-10 in beautiful San Francisco at SEMICON West to celebrate the 34th edition of the WT | Wearable Technologies Conference Series. Topics include data analytics in professional sports, prevention, treatment and rehabilitation with wearables, the future of digital health, medication and adherence, smart patches, workflow optimization and workforce safety and much more – featuring international leaders and experts of the wearables industry´s biggest names including Abbott, Autodesk, Datwyler, Kopin, Maxim Integrated, Multek, NFLPA, Omron, SharkDreams, Qualcomm, and many more. Register now to be part of #WTUS19

Telit, a global enabler of the IoT, announced that its ME910C1-WW is the first module certified by AT&T for its recently launched Narrowband IoT (NB-IoT) network. NB-IoT is a Low Power Wide Area Network (LPWAN) radio technology standard developed by 3GPP to enable a wide range of cellular devices and services. The ME910C1-WW also operates on the carrier’s complementary LTE-M Low-Power Wide-Area (LPWA) network for the Internet of Things.

Related IBM Watson IoT Speeds Up Business Transformation in Europe

The ME910C1-WW has a wide range of usage such as smart meters, point-of-sale terminals, industrial sensors, asset management, healthcare monitors and home automation systems. ME910C1-WW is an ideal candidate for IoT applications that require low power, long battery life, reports Embedded Computing Design.

The ME910C1-WW provides reliable connections even when IoT devices are in hard-to-reach locations. The radio frequency front-end (RFFE) engineering provides the module with superior performance across the entire industrial-grade operating temperature range from -40°C to +85°C.

“The Telit ME910C1-WW is already certified for use on AT&T’s LTE-M IoT network, and now it’s the first module certified for its new NB-IoT network,” said Manish Watwani, Chief Marketing and Product Officer, Telit. “These firsts highlight our commitment to enabling IoT device designers, manufacturers and their customers to take advantage of AT&T’s latest and greatest network technologies.”

The ME910C1-WW supports global LTE bands as well as 2G fallback and is available for use with carriers in North America, Europe, Japan, China, Australia and other geographies.

Related Telit Simplifies IoT Deployment with New Smaller Form Factor Module Family

AT&T’s NB-IoT and LTE-M networks deliver advanced services and capabilities for the IoT that include coverage extension, improved battery life and lower module and service costs,” according to Chris Penrose, President, IoT Solutions at AT&T. “With the recent launch of our NB-IoT network, we’re moving rapidly to make these advantages a reality for our business customers. Telit’s multi-mode module will play a critical role,” Penrose said.

WT | Wearable Technologies Conference in San Francisco on July 9-10

The most innovative wearables event will be back on July 9-10 in beautiful San Francisco at SEMICON West to celebrate the 34th edition of the WT | Wearable Technologies Conference Series. Topics include data analytics in professional sports, prevention, treatment and rehabilitation with wearables, the future of digital health, medication and adherence, smart patches, workflow optimization and workforce safety and much more – featuring international leaders and experts of the wearables industry´s biggest names including Abbott, Autodesk, Datwyler, Kopin, Maxim Integrated, Multek, NFLPA, Omron, SharkDreams, Qualcomm, and many more. Register now to be part of #WTUS19

June is National Safety Month. MobileHelp, a Florida-based leading provider of M-PERS (Mobile-Personal Emergency Response Systems) and personal health management technology, revealed the results of a new customer survey which focused on highly-athletic customers, representing a broader use case for its MobileHelp Smart, a wearable medical alert product. MobileHelp Smart is a smartwatch-like wearable.

Related Heatstroke Prevention Project with Smart Helmet Decreases Heatstroke Accidents at Construction Sites

The survey responders identified MobileHelp Smart wearable as a necessary product to have, with 48 percent saying they “definitely need” it and another 32 percent saying they “probably need” it.

Although the majority of the customers of MobileHelp are older people, the company’s robust wearable MobileHelp Smart is geared towards extreme athletes, people who work in harsh or dangerous conditions, or patients managing chronic illnesses, the company said in a press release.

The new survey therefore profiled highly-athletic customers with chronic conditions, to gauge the product’s ability to handle strenuous conditions.

“Since introducing this new wearable solution in early 2018, we’ve found it represents an emergency response option for a much wider range of people,” said Rob Flippo, CEO of MobileHelp. “We will continue bringing products to market which allow people feel safer while out on the road – or wherever their lives take them.”

The company’s customized user interface makes it easy for anyone to use the MobileHelp Smart to get help in an emergency. It also allows the user to take advantage of fitness-monitoring features, such as heart rate tracker, sleep tracker and more.

Related Cerna Home Care Releases “OnHand Assistance”, a Smartwatch for Seniors’ Safety

The combination of emergency response and health benefits fits into an all-embracing trend around the consumerization of health. MedPanel Research Manager Amy Zalatan says:

“[Wireless] health devices and apps are increasingly seen as an essential tool to empower patients to manage their health.”

WT | Wearable Technologies Conference in San Francisco on July 9-10

The most innovative wearables event will be back on July 9-10 in beautiful San Francisco at SEMICON West to celebrate the 34th edition of the WT | Wearable Technologies Conference Series. Topics include data analytics in professional sports, prevention, treatment and rehabilitation with wearables, the future of digital health, medication and adherence, smart patches, workflow optimization and workforce safety and much more – featuring international leaders and experts of the wearables industry´s biggest names including Abbott, Autodesk, Datwyler, Kopin, Maxim Integrated, Multek, NFLPA, Omron, SharkDreams, Qualcomm, and many more. Register now to be part of #WTUS19

After a successful launch of Virtual Reality headset VR-1, Finnish startup Varjo has announced its new mixed reality headset called Varjo XR-1.

Related Nreal’s Mixed Reality Glasses are Compact but Project High-Quality Visuals

Unlike virtual reality headsets, where digital content replaces the physical world, the Varjo XR-1 mixed reality headset lets virtual content coexist and interact with the real world around you. The XR-1 uses dual 12-megapixel outer cameras to pass video of the outside world into VR.

XR-1 is the only device that can track users’ eye movements across photorealistic mixed reality scenarios with sub-degree accuracy.

“The XR-1 can show mixed reality with true-to-life fidelity you can only achieve using video-pass-through. Lifelike mixed reality is quite literally impossible to achieve with optical-see-through systems like HoloLens,” Varjo co-founder Urho Konttori said in a statement.

The XR-1 is more of a developer’s kit, according to Varjo’s Finnish founders. Carmaker Volvo, is an investor in Varjo through its Volvo Cars Tech Fund. It is the first company that’s designed for the XR-1, and Volvo is using it to test interfaces for future cars, reports Cnet.

“Instead of the usual static way of evaluating new products and ideas, we can test concepts on the road immediately,” said Henrik Green, CTO of Volvo.

Volvo Cars has been using XR-1 prototypes in their workflow since the summer of 2018. By adding photorealistic virtual elements to the interior of the car, Volvo Cars designers are able to perform design-studies of future cars before they are even built, according to Varjo.

Related AIStorm Introduces Real-Time AI-in-Sensor Solutions for IoT, Mobile Handsets and Driverless Cars

“When you’re driving with XR-1, you actually forget you’re looking through a headset. People using XR-1 break when they see a virtual moose crossing the road. Or when a virtual car overtakes our test car, test drivers have asked ‘Is that car real or not?’” said Casper Wickman, Volvo’s Technical Leader.

WT | Wearable Technologies Conference in San Francisco on July 9-10

The most innovative wearables event will be back on July 9-10 in beautiful San Francisco at SEMICON West to celebrate the 34th edition of the WT | Wearable Technologies Conference Series. Topics include data analytics in professional sports, prevention, treatment and rehabilitation with wearables, the future of digital health, medication and adherence, smart patches, workflow optimization and workforce safety and much more – featuring international leaders and experts of the wearables industry´s biggest names including Abbott, Autodesk, Datwyler, Kopin, Maxim Integrated, Multek, NFLPA, Omron, SharkDreams, Qualcomm, and many more. Register now to be part of #WTUS19

Mojo Vision, a Saratoga, CA-based AR startup has revealed its Mojo Vision 14K pixel-per-inch display, which makes it the smallest and densest dynamic display ever made.

Related Vuzix Partners With Plessey to Develop Next-Gen AR Smartglasses Using MicroLED Technology

After founding in 2015, the company is working on what it calls “invisible computing” technology. Rather than constantly being distracted by having a phone in your face all the time, or the friction of an AR or VR headset, Mojo Vision says this tech can help you be more present and engaged with the real world. So if you get a notification or need to quickly access information, you’ll be able to see it at a glance, reports Cnet.

The miniature 14,000-ppi display uses MicroLED, a technology expected to play a crucial role in the future development of next-generation wearables, AR/VR hardware, and heads-up displays (HUDs).

The screen is ideal for use in ultra-small and dense augmented reality and virtual reality displays.

“It is information when you need it, and it’s not there when you don’t,” said Steve Sinclair, senior vice president of product and marketing at Mojo Vision. “We call it invisible computing. A lot of folks are focusing on MicroLEDs. It’s a good candidate for near-eye solutions. It can be used outdoors. Power is a consideration. And we drive the size of the pixels as low as possible.”

Unlike OLED, microLED is based on conventional GaN LED technology, which offers far higher total brightness than OLED produces, as much as 30 times, as well as higher efficiency in terms of lux/W. Therefore, MicroLEDs enable comfortable viewing outdoors.

Related HMDmd-Kopin Partnership to Develop Next Gen Wearable Displays for MedTech

This MicroLED display has a pixel density 300 times greater than current smartphone displays.

“We’re actually working on pixels that are even smaller than this,” said Sinclair. “Our goal is to eventually try and match the resolution of the human eye.”

WT | Wearable Technologies Conference in San Francisco on July 9-10

The most innovative wearables event will be back on July 9-10 in beautiful San Francisco at SEMICON West to celebrate the 34th edition of the WT | Wearable Technologies Conference Series. Topics include data analytics in professional sports, prevention, treatment and rehabilitation with wearables, the future of digital health, medication and adherence, smart patches, workflow optimization and workforce safety and much more – featuring international leaders and experts of the wearables industry´s biggest names including Abbott, Autodesk, Datwyler, Kopin, Maxim Integrated, Multek, NFLPA, Omron, SharkDreams, Qualcomm, and many more. Register now to be part of #WTUS19

American AR/VR wearable display manufacturer Vuzix announced its Vuzix Blade smartglasses will now support streaming video services like Netflix, Amazon Prime Video and HBO Go, and other consumer applications. Additionally, for a limited time, the company is offering 30% discount on its Vuzix Blade Smart Glasses at the price of $699.99 for both U.S. consumer and enterprise customers.

Related Apple Analyst Explains How Apple’s Long-Rumored Smartglasses Will Work

“The infrastructure to support the Vuzix Blade in scale has been achieved in terms of production capacity, device functionality and usability across a multitude of applications. The latest upgrade to the Vuzix Blade Companion App for iOS and Android opens the door for a wave of applications for enterprise and consumers that can now be supported by the Blade,” said Paul Travers, President and Chief Executive Officer at Vuzix.

Dubbed ‘Dads and Grads Summer Spree’, this promotion gives consumers and enterprise customers an ideal opportunity to own Vuzix Blade smartglasses with new features for a cheaper price. The Android based applications are now available for download from the Vuzix App Store, says a press release.

Vuzix also upgraded the Vuzix Blade Companion App for iOS and Android mobile phones to include a virtual trackpad that controls a mouse pointer on the Vuzix Blade, which together with the remote keyboard input provide users new ways to navigate apps.

New web browsing feature allow users to use browsers such as Firefox. The new functionality of the Blade Companion App makes available an extensive series of new enterprise and consumer applications that were previously incompatible with the Blade.

Related Vuzix-Eaton Partnership to Develop Smartglasses for Hazardous Workplaces

In addition to the ‘Dads and Grads Summer Spree’ promotion, Vuzix is announcing an ANSI Z87.1 safety glass rated Vuzix Blade for enterprise customers at a price point of $999.99.  Numerous enterprise customers have requested a safety glasses version of the Blade and the Company expects to begin shipping this new product to customers in July.

WT | Wearable Technologies Conference in San Francisco on July 9-10

The most innovative wearables event will be back on July 9-10 in beautiful San Francisco at SEMICON West to celebrate the 34th edition of the WT | Wearable Technologies Conference Series. Topics include data analytics in professional sports, prevention, treatment and rehabilitation with wearables, the future of digital health, medication and adherence, smart patches, workflow optimization and workforce safety and much more – featuring international leaders and experts of the wearables industry´s biggest names including Abbott, Autodesk, Datwyler, Kopin, Maxim Integrated, Multek, NFLPA, Omron, SharkDreams, Qualcomm, and many more. Register now to be part of #WTUS19

AT the CES this year, Nreal unveiled AR Nreal Light smartglasses which feels like a shrunken down version of smartglasses made by Magic Leap and HoloLens. Now, the Beijing-based company announced it will begin shipping the glasses later this year for a price of $499.

Related Huawei Partners Up with Gentle Monster to Release New Smartglasses

By the end of this year, consumers will get the nreal Light consumer kit, which consists of a folding pair of AR glasses that connect with USB-C for $499. A developer kit, which will arrive in September, costs $1,199 and comes with the nReal glasses, plus a single handheld 3DoF controller and a plug-in processing pack. The controller can point and control things, but doesn’t accurately track motion in space like Magic Leap’s controller can, reports Cnet

“nreal light provides a light-weight XR Viewer that allows consumers to take advantage of 5G including high bandwidth and low latency to deliver immersive experiences virtually anywhere, said Hugo Swart, Head of XR at Qualcomm Technologies. “We worked closely with nreal to ensure Snapdragon smartphone compatibility and ecosystem integration to transform the way people connect and consume entertainment, and to further advance XR to make it the next generation of mobile computing.”

Recently, the company raised an additional $16 million in funding from China Everbright Limited New Economy Fund, iQiyi, Shunwei Capital, and China Growth Capital. That money came just a month after the company announced a $15 million round at the CES 2019 tech trade show in Las Vegas.

Nreal formed a new partnership with Black Shark, which enables Nreal Light to be tethered to the gaming smartphone Black Shark 2.

Related Vuzix Announces M400, First Smartglasses With Dedicated XR1 Platform from Qualcomm

“Paired with Nreal Light, the Black Shark 2 will be able to deliver the highest performance mobile gaming experience. Nreal Light will completely immerse our users in a fully interactive gaming environment that places you right in the heat of the moment,” said David Li, global vice president at Black Shark, in a statement. “We are excited to work with Nreal to usher in a new era of the mobile gaming experience.”

WT | Wearable Technologies Conference in San Francisco on July 9-10

The most innovative wearables event will be back on July 9-10 in beautiful San Francisco at SEMICON West to celebrate the 34th edition of the WT | Wearable Technologies Conference Series. Topics include data analytics in professional sports, prevention, treatment and rehabilitation with wearables, the future of digital health, medication and adherence, smart patches, workflow optimization and workforce safety and much more – featuring international leaders and experts of the wearables industry´s biggest names including Abbott, Autodesk, Datwyler, Kopin, Maxim Integrated, Multek, NFLPA, Omron, SharkDreams, Qualcomm, and many more. Register now to be part of #WTUS19

HMDmd Inc., a Vista, CA-based company focused on developing and commercializing wearable display systems for surgery, is collaborating with Kopin Corporation to develop the next generation of high performance, wearable displays for medical applications, utilizing the Kopin’s proprietary technology, engineering and manufacturing resources. Kopin is a leading provider of innovative display technologies and critical components for integration into wearable computing systems for military, professional and consumer products.

Related Doctors Use HoloLens to Investigate Heart Scars in High Resolution Before Surgery

“A superior performance, specifically designed, medical grade XR wearable display is an important complement to the new technologies which are rapidly transforming surgery and interventional medicine in today’s integrated operating rooms. Lightweight, ergonomic, high resolution, 3D-capable displays are a command and control interface with the systems and information enabling today’s complex minimally invasive procedures, particularly those involving robotics, image guidance and real-time access to critical data,” said John R. Lyon, CEO of HMDmd.

Dr. John C.C. Fan, CEO of Kopin believes wearables must be designed in accordance with specific human factors in order to be effective in critical applications like surgery. “Our extensive experience with military and professional systems translates very well in producing optimal modules, which include our proprietary optics and displays, for surgery and interventional medicine. We look forward to partnering with HMDmd in developing high-performance products for this demanding market,” he said.

Related Kopin-Endopodium Partnership to Develop High Resolution Wearable Displays for Medical and Surgical Applications

WT | Wearable Technologies Conference in San Francisco on July 9-10

The most innovative wearables event will be back on July 9-10 in beautiful San Francisco at SEMICON West to celebrate the 34th edition of the WT | Wearable Technologies Conference Series. Topics include data analytics in professional sports, prevention, treatment and rehabilitation with wearables, the future of digital health, medication and adherence, smart patches, workflow optimization and workforce safety and much more – featuring international leaders and experts of the wearables industry´s biggest names including Abbott, Autodesk, Datwyler, Kopin, Maxim Integrated, Multek, NFLPA, Omron, SharkDreams, Qualcomm, and many more. Register now to be part of #WTUS19

Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a complex disorder that causes abdominal pain, cramping, bloating, gas, and diarrhea or constipation, or both. Although it affects the large intestine, IBS often appears to be associated with a poor nervous system. Specifically, the brain can perceive the signals sent by the gut as being abnormal, resulting in pain and discomfort.

Related Oshi Health Launches First All-in-One Mobile App to Allow IBD Patients Manage Their Conditions

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has cleared a wearable device called IB-Stim to treat functional abdominal pain associated with IBS in patients ages 11-18. IBS is one of the leading causes of abdominal pain in children, reports Business Wire.

“This is a monumental day for the millions of children suffering from functional abdominal pain related to IBS, along with their parents and clinical providers,” said IHS Chief Executive Officer Brian Carrico. “We know how debilitating this condition can be, and we are proud to release IB-Stim as the first FDA indicated treatment option for this patient population.”

The device, which looks similar to a hearing aid, is placed behind the patient’s ear during an outpatient visit and works by sending gentle electrical impulses into cranial nerve bundles located in the ear. This stimulation targets brain areas involved in processing pain and aids in the reduction of functional abdominal pain associated with IBS.

The Study

The FDA’s decision was based on a double blind, randomized, controlled trial which was designed to measure the effects of IB-Stim compared to placebo on several aspects of pain including worst pain and the pain-frequency-severity-duration composite score. The study also measured patients’ overall symptom improvement based on the Symptom Response Scale. The study showed that prior to IB-Stim treatment, 70 percent of patients had failed to improve with an average of four medications trialed. Patients treated with IB-Stim demonstrated an 81 percent improvement in global symptoms with no serious adverse events, and minimal to no side effects.

Related Wearable Stomach Monitor Tracks Electrical Activity for Signs of Indigestion

“We are thrilled that the laboratory studies translated to the clinical side,” said Dr. Adrian Miranda, chief medical officer for IHS. “This is an example of true translational research. We are committed to improving the lives of children and their families and couldn’t be happier with the FDA’s decision.”

WT | Wearable Technologies Conference in San Francisco on July 9-10

The most innovative wearables event will be back on July 9-10 in beautiful San Francisco at SEMICON West to celebrate the 34th edition of the WT | Wearable Technologies Conference Series. Topics include data analytics in professional sports, prevention, treatment and rehabilitation with wearables, the future of digital health, medication and adherence, smart patches, workflow optimization and workforce safety and much more – featuring international leaders and experts of the wearables industry´s biggest names including Abbott, Autodesk, Datwyler, Kopin, Maxim Integrated, Multek, NFLPA, Omron, SharkDreams, Qualcomm, and many more. Register now to be part of #WTUS19

Stress is a natural physical and mental reaction to life experiences that requires your body to react and adjust in response. For immediate, short-term situations, stress can be beneficial to your health. However, if stress levels stay high far longer than is necessary for survival, it can take a toll on your health. According to a survey, Forty-three percent of all adults suffer adverse health effects from stress.

Related These Smart Patches Monitor Your Stress to Help You Lead a Happier, Healthier Life

Keeping that in mind, Philips has developed a novel technology that provides insights into a person’s daily stress level, in a way that is easy to understand. EmoGraphy helps users achieve and maintain a better and balanced lifestyle by providing insight in stress levels and cognitive functioning of the brain. It can predict cognitive zone changes up to an hour ahead, and advises the user in plain language on appropriate actions.

“We know that the body gets a lot of signals about stress and over-arousal. People tend to ignore those signals that the body gives and this leads to more stress. We’ve seen in several studies that skin conductance is an accurate measurement of sympathetic nervous system activity, which indicates arousal and stress. The sweat glands are uniquely coupled to the sympathetic nervous system and give very clean measurements,” Navin Natoewal, the Head of Integrated Technology Solutions at Philips, told MedGadget in an interview.

“One of the signals of the sympathetic nervous system activity is stress-induced cortisol release, which can negatively impact your cognitive performance. We have found a unique algorithm where we can correlate the sweat gland activity to cortisol levels in your body. We are focusing mainly with our technology to give the immediate arousal measurements into what we call the stress level and we interpret that signal into what we call the cognitive zone,” Natoewal added.

Related VivaLNK’s Vital Scout is a Wearable Patch that Continuously Monitors Stress and Recovery

EmoGraphy Provides:

• Easy, unobtrusive, short-term daily stress monitoring
• Wearable device that can be worn comfortably on the wrist and elsewhere
• Current level of stress in StressLevel score
• CognitiveZone classification and insight into personal situation
• Interpretation and explanation of data and advice for optimal performance
• Improved wellbeing and quality of life
• Predictions of CognitiveZone changes 60 minutes in advance

WT | Wearable Technologies Conference in San Francisco on July 9-10

The most innovative wearables event will be back on July 9-10 in beautiful San Francisco at SEMICON West to celebrate the 34th edition of the WT | Wearable Technologies Conference Series. Topics include data analytics in professional sports, prevention, treatment and rehabilitation with wearables, the future of digital health, medication and adherence, smart patches, workflow optimization and workforce safety and much more – featuring international leaders and experts of the wearables industry´s biggest names including Abbott, Autodesk, Datwyler, Kopin, Maxim Integrated, Multek, NFLPA, Omron, SharkDreams, Qualcomm, and many more. Register now to be part of #WTUS19

OKI Electric Cable, a tech company specializing in electric cables, launched Stretchable Flexible Printed Circuits, better known as Stretchable FPC. The product is part of the new Oki Electric Cable product lineup to be introduced in June 2019.

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The astonishing technological advances and the growing sophistication of electronic devices in recent years have generated demand for new characteristics in the flexible printed circuits (FPCs) used as wiring materials.

Wiring materials for smart clothes and smart patches should have the ability to mount functional parts, in addition to light weight, thin profile, and the flexibility needed to ensure comfort when worn. These materials must also provide elasticity needed to accommodate the various movements of the human body. While existing FPCs offer light weight, thin profile, flexibility, and mountability, they lack elasticity, reports OKI.

OKI’s new Stretchable FPC offers elasticity by replacing the polyimide widely used in existing FPCs with an elastic substrate. This elastic substrate can be stretched repeatedly, like rubber, and is heat-resistant, allowing components to be solder-mounted. Its circuit conductor incorporates the same copper wiring as existing FPCs but the wiring method is specially designed to allow it to work with the stretchable substrate. The use of copper wiring minimizes variations in conductor resistance due to FPC expansion or contraction, allowing use of the FPC as a sensor. Potential applications for the Stretchable FPC include use as a wearable sensor to help diagnose disease in the chest; the Stretchable FPC is wrapped around the chest to measure signal fluctuations in the copper wiring.

Related CPI, ItoM Medical and Blumorpho Working on Next Gen Smart Vest for Children with Asthma

The Stretchable FPC can be used as elastic wiring material in wearable devices and will contribute to the ever-growing sophistication of electronic devices. Oki Electric Cable will continue to proactively develop new products to meet constantly diversifying customer needs.

WT | Wearable Technologies Conference in San Francisco on July 9-10

The most innovative wearables event will be back on July 9-10 in beautiful San Francisco at SEMICON West to celebrate the 34th edition of the WT | Wearable Technologies Conference Series. Topics include data analytics in professional sports, prevention, treatment and rehabilitation with wearables, the future of digital health, medication and adherence, smart patches, workflow optimization and workforce safety and much more – featuring international leaders and experts of the wearables industry´s biggest names including Abbott, Autodesk, Datwyler, Kopin, Maxim Integrated, Multek, NFLPA, Omron, SharkDreams, Qualcomm, and many more. Register now to be part of #WTUS19

Macronix, a leading integrated device manufacturer in the Non-Volatile Memory (NVM) market, provides a full range of NOR Flash, NAND Flash, and ROM products. With its world-class R&D and manufacturing capability, Macronix continues to deliver high-quality, innovative and performance-driven products to its customers in the consumer, communication, computing, automotive, networking and other market segments.

Read more MediaTek Accelerates 5G Rollout with Helio M70 5G Modem for Sub-6GHz Spectrum

Macronix ArmorFlash combines mature security technologies such as unique ID, authentication and encryption features to deliver superior data protection in high-density memory devices. OctaFlash provides fast data-transfer-rates operation frequency and high throughput that meet the “instant-on” performance demands for real-time system responsiveness in automotive, industrial and consumer applications. Macronix’s MX25R flash family features a broad array products with a wide voltage range suitable for IoT and other energy-conscious applications such as wearable, wireless and mobile devices, said the company in a press release.

Macronix was established in 1989 in the Science Park, Hsinchu, Taiwan.

In recent years, the company dedicated 20% of its annual revenue to Research and Develop. Their technical papers have been published and presented in major international conferences, such as IEDM and ISSCC. Macronix has been granted more than 7,400 patents and continues its investment in advanced technology development. The Taiwan-based company provide is jointly developing technology for Phase Change memories along with its high technology alliance partners in the world. The company also announced the world’s first Flash prospective technology, BE-SONOS™.

WT | Wearable Technologies Conference in San Francisco on July 9-10

The most innovative wearables event will be back on July 9-10 in beautiful San Francisco at SEMICON West to celebrate the 34th edition of the WT | Wearable Technologies Conference Series. Topics include data analytics in professional sports, prevention, treatment and rehabilitation with wearables, the future of digital health, medication and adherence, smart patches, workflow optimization and workforce safety and much more – featuring international leaders and experts of the wearables industry´s biggest names including Abbott, Autodesk, Datwyler, Kopin, Maxim Integrated, Multek, NFLPA, Omron, SharkDreams, Qualcomm, and many more. Register now to be part of #WTUS19

Disc Pump™ micropump manufacturer TTP Ventus has launched its latest product line, the LT Series, to be used in the medical, life science, environmental and industrial sectors. The LT Series micropumps offer 5,000 hours’ continuous operation across wide temperature range.

Read more Realize Your Vision of the Next Medical Applications

Micropumps are devices that can control and manipulate small fluid volumes. Such pumps are of special interest in microfluidic research, and have become available for industrial product integration in recent years.

TTP Ventus’ Disc Pump platform is a silent micropump platform that delivers exceptional pressure and flow, millisecond-response time, precision controllability and pulsation-free flow. These features enable product designers to drive innovation, for example through the creation of discrete, wearable medical devices or through the miniaturization of measurement equipment. The LT Series is a new addition to the line-up, providing in excess of 5,000 hours’ continuous operation across a wide temperature range of -25 to +40°C, reports Business Wire.

“The LT series marks a significant step forward in the lifetime capacity of our technology. The first two models in the series extend the envelope over previous designs, allowing us to support 6 months’ continuous operation. It is remarkable to consider that over this time, cycling 20,000 times per second, the pump will clock up more than 20 cycles for every year the universe has existed,” said Tom Harrison, Business Development Manager, TTP Ventus.

Read more Itamar Medical’s WatchPAT 300 is a Simple and Reliable Home Sleep Apnea Detection System

“We are committed to pushing the capability of our designs and are developing models offering further improvements to performance and life. We have a series of products planned for release over the course of the next year, ultimately targeting a pump rated to 10,000 hours in 2020.”

WT | Wearable Technologies Conference in San Francisco on July 9-10

The most innovative wearables event will be back on July 9-10 in beautiful San Francisco at SEMICON West to celebrate the 34th edition of the WT | Wearable Technologies Conference Series. Topics include data analytics in professional sports, prevention, treatment and rehabilitation with wearables, the future of digital health, medication and adherence, smart patches, workflow optimization and workforce safety and much more – featuring international leaders and experts of the wearables industry´s biggest names including Abbott, Autodesk, Datwyler, Kopin, Maxim Integrated, Multek, NFLPA, Omron, SharkDreams, Qualcomm, and many more. Register now to be part of #WTUS19

Senseonics, a company that develops implantable continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) system for people with diabetes, received FDA approval for the non-adjunctive indication (dosing claim) for its Eversense CGM.

Related Nemaura’s SugarBeat Non-Invasive CGM Gets CE Approval

The CGM System consists of a fluorescence-based sensor, a smart transmitter worn over the sensor to facilitate data communication, and a mobile app for displaying glucose values, trends and vibratory alerts for high and low glucose and can be removed, recharged and re-attached to the skin without discarding the sensor. People with diabetes can use this system instead of the traditional finger prick tests to make diabetes-related decisions.

“We are pleased with the results of the European Eversense PMCF registry which demonstrate the safety of the Eversense CGM System in a large group of patients,” said Katherine Tweden, PhD, Vice President of Clinical Sciences at Senseonics. “This post-market study was an opportunity to evaluate the real-world experience of Eversense and Eversense XL CGM as patients wore their first, second, third and fourth sensors. The results, with 3,667 patient-years of wear, demonstrated a strong safety profile over repeat sensor cycles for the first long-term implantable sensor.”

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Past clinical studies evaluated the safety of the system using a study design of one insertion and removal cycle. Safety data from 3,066 Eversense users from 15 European countries was collected and reported. Repeat insertions of the Eversense CGM confirmed the safety profile of prior studies and showed it to be safe for long-term continuous use.

WT | Wearable Technologies Conference in San Francisco on July 9-10

The most innovative wearables event will be back on July 9-10 in beautiful San Francisco at SEMICON West to celebrate the 34th edition of the WT | Wearable Technologies Conference Series. Topics include data analytics in professional sports, prevention, treatment and rehabilitation with wearables, the future of digital health, medication and adherence, smart patches, workflow optimization and workforce safety and much more – featuring international leaders and experts of the wearables industry´s biggest names including Abbott, Autodesk, Datwyler, Kopin, Maxim Integrated, Multek, NFLPA, Omron, SharkDreams, Qualcomm, and many more. Register now to be part of #WTUS19

Senior care service provider Cerna Home Care launched “Onhand Assistance” – a smartwatch especially designed for seniors. The stylish wearable device provides fall detection, fall notification, vitals monitoring, cellular communication, and medication reminders – in addition to life saving calls and care. Every second an older adult fall, making falls the number one cause of injuries and deaths from injury among older Americans. In 2014 alone, 29 million falls among elderly Americans resulted in seven million injuries and costing an estimated $31 billion in annual Medicare costs, according to a new report published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in this week’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR).

Related Wearable Accelerometers Can Predict Seniors’ Risk of Falling, Says Study

Onhand Assistance helps lessen the need for expensive personal caregivers and avoids time consuming ambulance trips to the hospital due to false alarms. Family members monitor their loved one through the Onhand Assistance smartphone app. Seniors, their friends and their families benefit by being better connected inexpensively and effectively, says a press release.

“There are many devices on the market for seniors that contact a call center with the push of a button. However, there are none combining cell phone features, auto fall detection, automatic calling, medication reminders, vitals monitoring and GPS location monitoring, explains Cerna Home Care’s Founder and CEO, Nick Payzant. “Onhand Assistance sends family members alerts via the smartphone app. It also calls and dispatches a senior care professional (not a call center employee that may have no experience with senior care) who can administer a full range of care services at home or can help determine if emergency personnel is needed.”

Related These Wearables Are Helping Seniors Stay Safe and Healthy

Features of the Onhand Assistance include:

• Fall detection and automatic SOS alert
• SOS distress button
• Two-way calling
• GPS tracking and history displacement
• Heart rate monitor
• Medication reminders
• Safe zone set-up
• Push button family calling

“The Onhand Assistance smartwatch solution fills the gaps in today’s wearable medical alert devices. In caring for the elderly, we listened to family members, care recipients, hospitals and rehab centers asking for a more robust way to be connected and safe,” said Payzant.

WT | Wearable Technologies Conference in San Francisco on July 9-10

The most innovative wearables event will be back on July 9-10 in beautiful San Francisco at SEMICON West to celebrate the 34th edition of the WT | Wearable Technologies Conference Series. Topics include data analytics in professional sports, prevention, treatment and rehabilitation with wearables, the future of digital health, medication and adherence, smart patches, workflow optimization and workforce safety and much more – featuring international leaders and experts of the wearables industry´s biggest names including Abbott, Autodesk, Datwyler, Kopin, Maxim Integrated, Multek, NFLPA, Omron, SharkDreams, Qualcomm, and many more. Register now to be part of #WTUS19

Sleep apnea is a potentially serious sleep disorder in which breathing repeatedly stops and starts. A study showed that people with severe sleep apnea may be up to three times more likely to die prematurely, and that risk increases if the sleep disorder is left untreated. If you snore loudly and feel tired even after a full night’s sleep, you might have sleep apnea.

On March, Wearable Technologies reported on a device called WatchPAT 300 Home Sleep Apnea Detection System. WatchPat 300 received FDA clearance in August 2018, and now, the company’s new device WatchPat One received clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

WatchPAT™ One is developed by an Israel-based company Itamar Medical Ltd. Itamar develops, manufactures and markets non-invasive diagnostic medical devices for sleep apnea with a focus on the cardiology market, the company said in a news release.

WatchPAT One is the first and only fully disposable Home Sleep Apnea Test (HSAT). The system incorporates the technology and comfort advances of WatchPAT 300, which received 510(k) clearance in August 2018 and was launched in March 2019.

“WatchPAT One is ideally suited for clinics and practices that recognize the value of HSAT but have limited resources, infrastructure or capital to invest in acquiring or managing our reusable WatchPAT products,” said Gilad Glick, President and Chief Executive Officer of Itamar Medical. “WatchPAT One offers patients and physicians the same simplicity, accuracy and reliability as WatchPAT 300 without the need for return shipping, downloading, cleaning or preparation for the next study. We expect the availability of a disposable WatchPAT system will improve patient access by increasing the number physicians able to offer our cutting-edge technology to their patients. Additionally, as a disposable HSAT, WatchPAT One may have particular utility in the inpatient setting, where transmission of infection through reusable medical devices is a significant concern.”

Related This Wearable Sleep Tracker Can Help Detect Your Sleep Apnea

The device can be paired with a smartphone using Itamar’s proprietary app. Sleep study data are collected during the test and automatically sent to CloudPAT™, Itamar’s secure server.

WT | Wearable Technologies Conference in San Francisco on July 9-10

The most innovative wearables event will be back on July 9-10 in beautiful San Francisco at SEMICON West to celebrate the 34th edition of the WT | Wearable Technologies Conference Series. Topics include data analytics in professional sports, prevention, treatment and rehabilitation with wearables, the future of digital health, medication and adherence, smart patches, workflow optimization and workforce safety and much more – featuring international leaders and experts of the wearables industry´s biggest names including Abbott, Autodesk, Datwyler, Kopin, Maxim Integrated, Multek, NFLPA, Omron, SharkDreams, Qualcomm, and many more. Register now to be part of #WTUS19

Over 30 million speech impaired people around the globe relies on sign language as a means of communication. But sign language isn’t understood by most of the people on the planet, which creates a communication barrier for the people with speech impairment.

Read more This AI-Powered Smart Glove Can Identify Objects by Touch

Roy Allela, a 25-year-old Kenyan man has invented smart gloves that can convert hand gestures of sign language into audio speech. This innovation could change the lives of hearing-impaired people across the world.

Dubbed Sign-IO, the gloves have sensors stitched to each finger. The sensors interpret the word being signed from the bend of the finger.

Allela said challenges faced by his deaf niece inspired him to create the gloves. He also said that the speed at which the signs are vocalized is one of the most important aspects of the smart gloves:

“My 6-year-old niece wears the gloves, pairs them to her phone or mine, then starts signing and I’m able to understand what she’s saying,” says Allela.

“People speak at different speeds and it’s the same with people who sign – some are really fast, others are slow, so we integrated that into the mobile application so that it’s comfortable for anyone to use it.”

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The Sign-IO delivers give translations in real-time and the gloves can be set to customized interpretation speeds, explains Allela. The device can also be altered to manipulate the pitch, speed and tone of the voice, reports CapeTalk.

Allela is among 16 young Africans who have been shortlisted by The Royal Academy of Engineering Africa Prize for inventors from six countries. He says the recognition is a wonderful validation of his work and a great opportunity to put African inventors on the map.

WT | Wearable Technologies Conference in San Francisco on July 9-10

The most innovative wearables event will be back on July 9-10 in beautiful San Francisco at SEMICON West to celebrate the 34th edition of the WT | Wearable Technologies Conference Series. Topics include data analytics in professional sports, prevention, treatment and rehabilitation with wearables, the future of digital health, medication and adherence, smart patches, workflow optimization and workforce safety and much more – featuring international leaders and experts of the wearables industry´s biggest names including Abbott, Autodesk, Datwyler, Kopin, Maxim Integrated, Multek, NFLPA, Omron, SharkDreams, Qualcomm, and many more. Register now to be part of #WTUS19