Picosun Group, a Finnish company, well-known for its AGILE ALD (Atomic Layer Deposition) thin film coating technology for global industries, reported excellent results in using ALD in the manufacturing of lithium ion thin film battery materials.

Read more PolyU Researchers Develop Flexible High-Energy Textile Lithium Battery for Wearables

ALD is the leading thin film technology by Picosun. ALD is 100% conformal, 100% uniform, pinhole-free and repeatable. Picosun provides the most advanced ALD thin film coating technology to enable the industrial leap into the future.

Solid-state Li-ion thin film batteries (SSLIBs) are ideal power sources for wearable medical devices, laptops, smartphones and other technologies because they are small, safe and possess excellent energy storage capacity. Li-ion batteries have made such an impact on our daily lives that its developers, Dr. John B. Goodenough, Dr. M. Stanley Whittingham, and Dr. Akira Yoshino, earned the Nobel chemistry prize this year.

Picosun has successfully used its ALD technology to fabricate high-quality, high-performance thin film NiO anodes for SSLIBs. Compared to graphite, which is widely used to produce anodes of lithium-ion batteries, deposited NiO films had more than twice as large capacity and more than three times as high density. The surpassing characteristics of NiO potentially allow improvement of the energy density of SSLIBs, reports Picosun in a press release.

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“Battery applications are yet one example of ALD's flexibility as a method, and how new industries discover the possibilities of ALD day by day, said Dr. Jani Kivioja, CTO of Picosun Group. “Deep trenches with aspect ratios exceeding 1:2500 have been successfully coated with our ALD tools equipped with our patented Picoflow feature, which further advocates the use of our technology in 3D solid state Li-ion battery manufacturing. We are happy that our ALD solutions can be potentially utilized in future's energy storage solutions in conjunction with clean energy production, and to power more compact healthcare devices, to improve people's quality of life.”

Read more VARTA Microbattery Launches Three New Lithium-Ion Cells for Wearables at the ISPO Munich 2019

In addition to high quality and performance of the ALD NiO anodes, ALD's unmatched capability to produce conformal and uniform coatings with excellent purity and repeatability inside challenging microscale architectures such as high aspect ratio trenches make it an ideal method for 3D SSLIB materials manufacturing. Also, the ALD processes for several other anode materials such as SnO2, CoO, and MnO are well-known and thoroughly studied.

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Scientists at the University of Bath in the UK have developed artificial neurons on silicon chips that behave just like the real thing – a first-of-its-kind achievement with enormous scope for medical devices to cure chronic diseases, such as heart failure, Alzheimer’s, and other diseases of neuronal degeneration.

Read more Tiny Bluetooth-Driven Implant Deliver Drugs for Chronic Disease Management

The newly invented artificial neurons also need only one billionth the power of a microprocessor, making them ideally suited for use in medical implants and other bio-electronic devices, reports University of BATH.

The research team was led by the University of Bath and included researchers from the Universities of Bristol, Zurich and Auckland. The researches described their work in a study published in Nature Communications.

Researchers have been attempting to develop artificial neurons for a long time, as it opens up the possibility of curing conditions where neurons are not working properly, have had their processes severed as in spinal cord injury, or have died. For instance, in heart failure, neurons in the base of the brain do not respond properly to nervous system feedback, they in turn do not send the right signals to the heart, which then does not pump as hard as it should. Artificial neurons could repair diseased bio-circuits by replicating their healthy function and responding adequately to biological feedback to restore bodily function.

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The researchers accurately replicated the complete dynamics of hippocampal neurons and respiratory neurons from rats, under a wide range of stimuli.

“Until now neurons have been like black boxes, but we have managed to open the black box and peer inside. Our work is paradigm changing because it provides a robust method to reproduce the electrical properties of real neurons in minute detail,” said lead researcher Professor Alain Nogaret, from the University of Bath Department of Physics.

The new artificial neurons also require very low levels of power to operate. “Our neurons only need 140 nanoWatts of power. That’s a billionth the power requirement of a microprocessor, which other attempts to make synthetic neurons have used,” explained Nogaret. “This makes the neurons well suited for bio-electronic implants to treat chronic diseases.”

Read more Fighting Against NCDs – Wearables for Chronic Disease Management and Mobility Challenges

This new invention has enormous scope for medical devices. “We’re developing smart pacemakers that won’t just stimulate the heart to pump at a steady rate but use these neurons to respond in real time to demands placed on the heart – which is what happens naturally in a healthy heart. Other possible applications could be in the treatment of conditions like Alzheimer’s and neuronal degenerative diseases more generally,” said Nogaret.

Chronolife, a pioneer in the wearable biometrics space, received 2019 Global Visionary Innovation Leadership Award from Frost & Sullivan. Chronolife's AI-powered T-shirt-based platform captures biometrics to track chronic conditions such as heart disease. With a state-of-the-art algorithm that captures multiple medical-grade parameters, it generates contextualized, accurate, and relevant biometrics critical to leveraging the cost-saving and transformative potential of wearable technologies. Chronolife’s cotton-and lycra-based vest, designed to prevent medical emergencies in patients with congestive heart failure (CHF), debuted at the CES 2019 in Las Vegas.

“Chronolife's end-to-end solution, a single T-shirt and smartphone application, allows end users to integrate diagnostic monitoring with the activities of daily living seamlessly. Specifically, the Chronolife T-shirt allows the company to weave multiple capabilities and electronic components into a single washable T-shirt,” said Sowmya Rajagopalan, Global Program Director at Frost & Sullivan. “The T-shirt leverages the company's biosensing platform to monitor physiological data in real time for cardiac disease patients, with settings ranging from acute to ambulatory care.”

Chronolife’s Smartwear Can Capture:

• Electrocardiogram (ECG) – tracking heart rate, heart rate variability, and arrhythmia
• Pulmonary impedance – to determine edema characterization
• Thoracic respiration – tracking respiratory distress and respiratory rate
• Abdominal respiration – tracking respiratory distress
• Skin temperature – tracking temperature variation
• Physical activity – offering fall detection, number of steps, posture indications, and intensity

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hat sets Chronolife apart from others in this field is its patented neuromorphic Hierarchy Of event-based Time Surfaces (HOTS) algorithm. Being event-based instead of time-based, HOTS can efficiently parse biometric data while analyzing multiple data flows to characterize clinical events. Thus, the device does not require continuous data gathering or cloud-based large servers to conduct Big Data analytics. The captured data transmits through BlueTooth Low Energy to the user's smartphone application for continuous integration and analysis, says a press release.

The technology can store data locally for up to 20 hours, and uploads patient data to remote cloud-based servers whenever the smartphone is on and a WiFi connection is available. Data is then archived on accredited data hosting servers for easy access by patients or providers.

Read more Astroskin Smart Shirt Will Monitor Astronauts’ Vital Signs in Space

“While Chronolife is currently pre-commercial, the company's adaptable platform has the potential to target a plethora of use cases and applications. The company is actively exploring other applications, including sudden infant death syndrome, epilepsy, and medical conditions related to sleep apnea," noted Rajagopalan.

Each year, Frost & Sullivan bestows its Global Visionary Innovation Leadership Award upon a company that demonstrates excellence in growth and customer value.

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FITIV Pulse GPS cardio tracker is an all-in-one fitness solution designed to help keep you motivated, engaged and informed during your fitness journey. Using artificial intelligence, the app can intelligently predict your rate of weight loss and provide curated activity and nutrition advice to help you reach your goals. The new feature, called FITIV Insights, makes it easier to interpret health and fitness data by displaying data trends and providing expert advice to help users create actionable fitness goals and receive objective measures of their progress.

Read more Study: Weight loss wearables most effective alongside intradisciplinary approach

Sylvio LeBlanc, the founder of FITIV Pulse had to endure a difficult life due to weight gain. He was having a tough time losing weight; he was losing and again gaining the same 20 pounds, over and over, without consistent and sustainable progress, FITIV said in a press release.

“I developed FITIV for myself, primarily. I'm the kind of person that needs to know that what I'm doing is working. Seeing those numbers really kept me motivated and tracking my calories was the key to my success.”

LeBlanc said the new feature will help more people take control of their health. “The sky's the limit,” he said. “with all of the data users are already tracking we have an opportunity to really make health and fitness information accessible.”

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The first edition of FITIV Insights is now available on the App Store and includes the aforementioned weight management insight as well as an activity insight.

Future insights will provide information on whether users' heart health is improving and how their fitness performance is changing over time.

“You don't need to be a professional to interpret your health data anymore.” LeBlanc said. “whether you're worried that you're overtraining or are wondering if you're getting the right kind of exercise, FITIV Pulse can now provide that analysis for you.”

Read more This Wearable Helps You Lose Weight by Analyzing Your Breath

FITIV is compatible with Android and Apple Watch, Airpods, and 3rd party devices including Polar Bluetooth band and other popular apps that integrate with Apple Health.

FITIV Pulse is an all-in-one solution. Leveraging wearable technology FITIV keeps users informed in real-time, helping them level up their workouts and train according to their fitness goals.

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VivaLNK, a Silicon Valley company that provides connected healthcare solutions for wellness, patient care, and telemedicine, received CE Mark for its multi-vital medical wearable sensor and software development kit (SDK).

Read more VivaLNK Partners with Emory University to Provide Wearable ECG Sensors for Study

Weighing only 7.5 grams, the reusable and wearable ECG patch sticks to the patient’s chest and can record ECG waveforms, respiratory rate, heart rate, RR interval, as well as movement based on a three-axis accelerometer. Based on VivaLNK's eSkin® technology and patient-centric design, the sensor comes in the form of a small bandage sized patch designed to be user friendly, reusable, and well suited for both in-patient and remote patient monitoring (RPM) applications. The device can be used repeatedly, reports VivaLNK in a press release.

“The CE Mark is another major milestone in VivaLNK's pursuit of delivering advanced patient monitoring solutions to market. VivaLNK's unique electronic skin technology offers powerful technical capabilities without compromising user experience,” Jiang Li, CEO of VivaLNK. “Our aim is to accelerate medical application development by providing the sensor platform so that the industry can rapidly innovate novel solutions while at the same time making it more accessible to patients around the world.”

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The multi-vital sensor and SDK is part of VivaLNK's Medical Sensor Platform strategy which accelerates medical application innovation by decoupling the sensor hardware, data capture in remote locations, and cloud connectivity from the application so that healthcare solution developers can focus on the algorithms and analytics for their specific domain.

Read more Current Health Partners with VivaLNK and MIR to Improve Remote Patient Monitoring

Applications powered by VivaLNK's Medical Sensor Platform include:

• Chemotherapy remote patient monitoring
• Clinical trial remote patient monitoring
• Cardiac arrhythmia monitoring
• Patient infection monitoring
• Hypertension stress management
• Heart failure event detection

VivaLNK’s portfolio includes wearable medical grade devices and data analytics applications that continuously monitor the health and well-being of individuals. The company's vision is to improve the quality and accessibility of healthcare worldwide by combining technology, data, and analytics into an integrated solution.

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Zebra Technologies, a company based in Lincolnshire, Illinois, USA, that manufactures and sells marking, tracking and computer printing technologies, announced new warehouse offerings designed to optimize workflows, and improve employee onboarding.

Read more ProGlove Launches New Wearable Barcode Scanner for Low-Frequency Scanning

Zebra FulfillmentEdge™ transforms existing warehouse management systems (WMS) by enabling real-time dynamic workflows and routing mobile workers for picking, packing and put-away – without costly and risky upgrades or backend changes. It offers Zebra’s Android-based mobile computers and innovative optional accessories like the new enterprise-class HD4000 head-mounted display. Zebra also introduced a new single-finger RS5100 wireless ring scanner that provides mobile workers with an ultra-light hands-free scanning option for increased productivity in industrial environments, said a press release.

A study conducted by Zebra showed that IT and operational decision makers are already taking steps to upgrade their facilities and WMS platforms. According to the study, 54% of surveyed organizations plan to implement full-featured WMS and mobile worker execution systems by 2024. FulfillmentEdge integrates existing real-time WMS data with real-time location information, providing visibility into the location of workers, inventory and material handling assets. The solution then analyzes the information and creates real-time workflows delivered as electronic tasks that can contain visual directions to the next pick location and photos of the item to ensure picking accuracy. Now, one worker can simultaneously pick multiple orders, enabling businesses to dramatically increase order fulfillment times and boost worker productivity up to 24 percent.

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“Zebra’s intuitive FulfillmentEdge software and optional HD4000 head-mounted display provide mobile workers with clear, step-by-step instructions that reduce training time by 90 percent to allow near-instant onboarding while decision makers benefit from the real-time insights and analytics that enable better data-driven decisions,” said Joe White, Senior Vice President of Enterprise Mobile Computing, Zebra Technologies.

HD4000 Head-Mounted Display

The rugged, monocular HD4000 head-mounted display is an optional accessory for select mobile computers capable of running the FulfillmentEdge solution. It tethers via USB, providing all-day power and increased productivity to warehouse, manufacturing and field service workers who can benefit from hands-free, directed-action workflows.

Read more RealWear’s HMT-1 AR Headset Helping Automotive Companies Achieve Greater Productivity

RS5100 Bluetooth Ring Scanner

The single-finger RS5100 Bluetooth ring scanner helps improve worker productivity by freeing up workers’ hands for inventory management, picking, packing and sorting applications in industrial environments. Zebra’s smallest and lightest ring scanner offers a long battery life and features a single-sided- or double-trigger to enable workers to use gloves or bare hands for all-day comfort. It also supports NFC tap-to-pair with most Zebra enterprise-class Bluetooth-enabled mobile devices and offers high-performance 1D/2D omnidirectional scanning to maximize worker productivity.

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Diodes Inc., an American manufacturer and supplier of discrete, logic, analog and mixed-signal semiconductors, announced an enhanced version of its popular sounder driver for small and portable devices. The tiny PAM8904E delivers higher performance at a lower voltage.

Related Nordic Semiconductor Launches Bluetooth 5.1 SoC for Multi-Protocol Applications

Manufacturers now use miniature piezo and ceramic sounders extensively in trackers, alarms, health monitors, security devices, and smart sensors as audio user interface. Due to their small size, these sounders can fit into portable and wearable devices, such as IoT-enabled trackers, as well as enabling miniature smart sensors that monitor the environment, including security detectors and water, smoke, and CO2 alarms. The PAM8904E sounder driver is designed to meet the requirements of the smallest application operating from extremely low voltages, said a press release.

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The device can support both single-ended and differential output modes with minimal external components. It features a wide-input voltage supply range between 1.5V and 5.5V and a shutdown current consumption within 1µA. The sounder also accepts an input signal between 20Hz to 300kHz. Despite its small size, the PAM8904E integrates a charge-pump boost converter that operates in 1x, 2x, and 3x modes.

The enhanced option in the PAM8904E drives a sounder load up to 47nF, which is significantly higher than the drive capability of competing devices. The PAM8904E also features thermal shutdown, overcurrent protection, and short-circuit protection as well as an automatic shutdown and wake function that can help maximize the operational lifetime of battery-powered devices.

Related ActiGraph Picks Nordic Semiconductor’s System-on-Chip for its CentrePoint Insight Watch

The PAM8904EGPR is available in the W-QFN2020-12 Type A package, which measures 2.00mm × 2.00mm wide × 0.80mm high. Other packaging options include U-QFN3030-12 Type A (PAM8904EJPR) and U-QFN3030-16 (PAM8904EJER).

VitalTech, a company focused on enhancing the quality of life for seniors through connected care services and smart wearable devices, included a medication module to its VitalCare remote patient monitoring platform. Clinicians and patients can now set medication reminders by time of day, which are then sent to the patient's tablet or smartphone. These reminders can also be sent in the form of messages to VitalTech's VitalBand smartwatch.

Read more Pfizer Teams Up with Popit to Improve Medication Adherence

The patient or the clinician can also add medications, a critical component that provides the primary physician with the ability to view all medications prescribed by any specialists. This feature helps avoid adverse reactions due to conflicting prescriptions, said VitalTech in a press release.

Patients simply need to mark their medications daily as taken, skipped or missed. This information is logged in their record in the VitalCare portal.

Medication adherence is vital for maintaining good health. Failure to adherence is a serious problem which not only affects the patient but also the health care system. But all too often patients do not take their medications on time.

“It's well known that medication adherence is a huge factor in improving outcomes for our senior population,” said James Hamilton, CEO of VitalTech. “VitalCare is the remote patient monitoring system built from the ground up specifically for seniors, providing the ease of use they seek whether they're aging in place at home, or at an assisted living or skilled nursing facility.”

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In addition to medication, VitalCare has modules for monitoring vital signs, Activities of Daily Living (ADLs) and nutrition intake. Collection of vitals is done through Bluetooth-enabled medical devices. In many deployments, VitalTech provides these devices in a fulfillment service along with a tablet. These devices are pre-paired with the tablet and customized to the patient's individual health profile, and may include a blood pressure cuff, pulse oximeter or other devices.

VitalCare enables better communication between patients and their clinicians via telemedicine video calls for remote health visits and virtual check-ins, reducing unnecessary visits to the emergency room or physician's office.

Read more cue-Rx Medication Adherence System to Deliver Prescription in their Original Containers

Nutritional data is collected by the daily recording of foods consumed. This is done via the user's voice or by barcode scanning. The resulting trend data for measures such as calories, fat and sodium is available for the patient and their care team to view, helping the patient stay on track with their health goals.

"VitalCare is the most complete senior-focused remote patient monitoring system on the market," said Mr. Hamilton. "It's a key part of keeping seniors 'protected, healthy, connected.®'"

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Smartwatch maker Garmin and leading sleep platform Sleeprate announced partnership to deliver the first mobile self-help sleep assessment and improvement program that aims to help consumers sleep better, track their recovery, and optimize workouts.

Read more EverSleep Helps You Sleep Better by Monitoring Your Sleep, Snoring and Oxygen Saturation

Under the collaboration, Sleeprate will use the Garmin Health Companion SDK to access health and activity data from Garmin wearable devices. As a result, users will gain a deeper and more accurate look at how physical performance and sleep are related, says a press release.

To stay healthy, a person needs 7 to 8 hours of sleep every day. Getting less than 7-8 hours of sleep is defined as sleep deprivation. In the U.S., more than 108 people suffer from sleep deprivation, according to the CDC. Sleep deprivation drains your mental abilities and puts your physical health at real risk. Science has linked poor sleep with all kinds of health problems, from weight gain to a weakened immune system.

This new integration will allow the Israeli app maker to give consumers better insight on how their individual exercise habits are affecting their sleep and create customized behavioral goals to realign the body's internal clock for a better night's sleep, according to Dr. Anda Baharav, CEO and founder of Sleeprate. Users will get deeper insights on what is happening while they are sleeping and e-coaching to fix their poor sleep habits.

“One of the most important elements of overall health is sufficient and quality sleep,” said Dr. Baharav. “People can exercise and eat healthy, but if they don't get enough quality sleep then they won't get the full benefits of the workout.”

Read more Beddr Launches Sleep Coaching, Data Analytics for Employers

Sean McNamara, manager, Garmin Health, says that working with Sleeprate will help Garmin Health continue its mission to improve the health of Garmin users and create products that are an essential part of customers' lives.

“This collaboration brings together industry-leading products and data and from both wellness and wearables leaders,” said McNamara. “The Companion SDK used by Sleeprate will allow consumers to get a deeper understanding of how exercise and sleep influence each other, providing an engaging solution that helps address sleep difficulties.”

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NextMind, a Paris, France-based neurotechnology startup, unveiled a wearable device that can control any device using just a person's thoughts. Launched at Slush 2019, a conference of startups and investors in Helsinki, this groundbreaking technology is a first-of-its-kind, noninvasive, brain-computer interface that translates brain signals instantly from the user's visual cortex into digital commands for any device in real time, the company said.

Read more This Wearable Uses Your Brain Waves to Control Any IoT Device

“This technology breakthrough represents the next frontier of human-computer interaction and we are truly humbled to be here today introducing NextMind to the world,” said Kouider. “For those who have said it would never be possible with noninvasive technology to communicate intent and implement actions directly from our brain to the world around us, it's time to believe - because this is real, and the possibilities are truly endless.”

The round shaped wearable device is small and light-weight. It can fit into the back of a cap or headband, and rests gently on the user's head. Patented dry active electrodes provide high quality signals. It captures data from the electrical signals created by the user's neuron activity in the visual cortex, and using machine learning algorithms, transforms that output into communication that enables easier interaction and control with a computer, AR/VR headset or any device within the Internet of Things, reports Business Wire. The device can be used up to 10 hours in fully active mode.

A limited number of NextMind Development Kits will ship during the first half of 2020, said Kouider. A Dev Kit pre-order announcement is anticipated in January. Developers interested in receiving special advance notice about placing orders can sign up at www.next-mind.com/waitlist.

Read more AlterEgo: Wearable That Lets You Give Voice Command by Reading Your Unspoken Thoughts

The general public can try out this device at CES 2020 in booth #21839 in LVCC, South Hall 1 from Jan. 7-10.

Founded by Sid Kouider in 2017, NextMind develops the next generation of brain computer interfaces.

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In this age of technology, we’re connected than ever before. IoT devices, from home appliances to wearables, are communicating with each other using Wi-Fi, Bluetooth or Cellular connection. This explosion in connectivity comes with an increased risk of data theft, service disruptions and potential safety concerns.

Read more Visa and Planeta Informatica Launch New Technology to Bring Speed and Security of Contactless Payment to Transit Operators Worldwide

Intertek, a leading Total Quality Assurance provider to industries worldwide, launched Cyber Assured, the first ever cybersecurity product testing and certification program, delivering a comprehensive certification solution for manufacturers and brands for their connected consumer products.

Intertek’s Cyber Assured Certification is the first robust product cybersecurity testing and certification program that provides continuous vulnerability monitoring for connected consumer products. It enables manufacturers to assess their products, improving the product’s cybersecurity, helping meet emerging regulatory requirements such as California SB327, and most importantly demonstrating to consumers that the product is secure, through the use of the Intertek Cyber Assured Mark and directory, reports Business World.

“Intertek has been a pioneer in cybersecurity testing, certification and assurance for more than three decades. The IoT revolution is bringing huge opportunities for our clients, and society in general, improving life in many ways. However, it also creates significant risks, of which many businesses have no previous experience, as well as new regulatory requirements like California IoT and EU GDPR,” said Tony Walker, Vice President, Intertek Connected World. “Bringing together Intertek’s cybersecurity expertise, other ‘connectivity’ services including cellular device testing, and our global product safety and compliance testing heritage, we are now able to offer the full suite of bespoke assurance services to allow our clients to launch successful, secure, connected products, and monitor their product’s security over its entire lifecycle.”

Read more Oracle Unveils Java Card 3.1 to Boost Security for Applications Running on Smart Cards and Other IoT Devices

Cyber Assured continuously reassess the certified products to ensure their safety against constantly emerging threats and vulnerabilities. Furthermore, Cyber Assured’s unique scanning process provides manufacturers the information needed to ‘patch’ software to maintain security, ensuring that a product remains secure over its entire lifetime, giving consumers greater peace of mind. Intertek Cyber Assured certification is an end-to-end assurance solution that covers all three elements of IoT networks, going beyond simply testing the product to additionally cover web and mobile applications, and cloud services.

Intertek has been a leader in cybersecurity and cellular connectivity testing for more than 30 years. The company’s Connected World business line provides the complete range of services needed to allow clients to launch effective, secure connected products.

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BilSpark Biomedical, a Texas-based neurostimulation device company developing solutions for opioid withdrawal, announced open patient enrollment in their clinical trial to validate the company's auricular neurostimulation device for opioid withdrawal. Dubbed Phoenix™, the device delivers mild electrical stimulation to cranial nerve branches for the treatment of symptoms associated with opioid withdrawal.

Read more This Wearable Detects Opioid Overdose and Automatically Calls for Help

Spark is partnering with CARMAhealth a collaborative primary care and psychiatric outpatient practice with a specialty focus on addiction medicine and Recovery Unplugged. Recovery Unplugged is a national addiction treatment organization, and the only substance use care provider to fully integrate music into their rehab programs. Patients with opioid use disorder (OUD) will enroll in the trial at two Recovery Unplugged locations in Austin, Texas, and Lake Worth, Florida, Spark Biomedical said in a press release.

“We're very excited to partner with Spark on this research. We share common values as innovators in the field, and this device shows promise for people who are dependent on opioids,” said Carlos Tirado, MD, MPH, Chief Medical Officer of CARMAhealth Management. Dr. Tirado is also overseeing the Phoenix clinical study.

According to the U.S Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, an estimated 10.3 million people are misusing opioid pain relievers and over 800,000 people with heroin use in the past year. Of those, the vast majority who needed substance abuse care do not receive specialty substance use treatment due to the fear of withdrawal.

The prospective, double-blind, randomized control trial aims to demonstrate that the Spark "Phoenix" device can aid in the opioid detoxification process by allowing OUD patients to get through withdrawal safely and comfortably. In early 2019, Spark completed a proof-of-concept study demonstrating that auricular neurostimulation can significantly reduce withdrawal symptoms in active OUD patients, as represented by the Clinical Opiate Withdrawal Scale (COWS).

Read more Wearable Sensor Administers Narcan to Prevent Opioid Overdose Deaths

“We understand the urgent need to provide an alternative, safe, and effective solution to assist OUD patients in taking the first, most challenging step in addiction recovery, overcoming withdrawal. Our goal is to allow patients to comfortably transition through withdrawal to long-term maintenance treatment, such as opioid antagonist medications,” said Dr. Navid Khodaparast, Spark's Chief Science Officer. “This clinical trial gives Spark the necessary data to judiciously progress through the FDA clearance process and further enables Spark to help combat the opioid epidemic. We look forward to the day that the "Phoenix" solution is available at every point of care for those suffering opioid withdrawal.”

Targeted clinical trial patients include those with current opioid use disorder wanting to undergo withdrawal without the use of opioid-based medication.

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Wearables aren’t just something that you wear around your wrist anymore. Hearables – a new type of wearables – are becoming popular. Hearables are smart electronic in-ear-devices designed for wireless communication, health monitoring and fitness tracking. These devices also can translate languages in real time and can be operated via voice command.

For vital signs monitoring, hearables require tiny sensors with long battery life and precision measurement capabilities.

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Read more Hearables Are Going to Revolutionize Healthcare, Here’s How

ActLight, founded in 2011, is a Lausanne, Switzerland-based startup that develops disruptive technology in the field of light sensors. The company has developed a heart-rate sensor based on dynamic photodiode (DPD). The ActLight Dynamic Photodiode consumes about 20 percent of the power of commercial devices, making it an ideal candidate for hearables.

The absence of an analog amplifier improves the signal-to-noise ratio of the DPD, which translates in higher output signal accuracy.

ActLight’s 100% owned, patented CMOS-based photonics technology allows to substantially improve the efficiency and accuracy of various light sensing applications in the Internet of Things (IoT) space, like Time-Of-Flight (TOF) based distance measuring (i.e. user detection, gesture control and visual recognition), vital signs monitoring, 3D/2D cameras and much more. ActLight operates in markets like mobile and wearable devices, healthcare/medtech, autonomous driving, drones and robotics.

Despite ultra-small detector area (<0.2mm2) and minimal LED power (<1uW/Hz), the sensor delivers convincing >70dB SNR. In addition, the ActLight solution provides a very strong output signal without AFE, further reducing the power consumption of the overall system, says a press release.

Typically, wearables use photoplethysmography (PPG) to measure pulse and oxygen uptake in the blood by measuring the amount of light reflected back from blood flowing in an artery. However, the bright light used in the technology is responsible for draining batteries. DPD can reduce the required light power by 80%, according to ActLight.

Read more Future Hearables Will Monitor Our Brains to Make Our Lives Better, Says Stanford Scientist

The Dynamic PhotoDiode is the vital signs monitoring sensor of choice to meet the very demanding technical requirements of the hearable devices market.

Xyntek Incorporated, a global leader in pharmaceutical and life sciences automation and IT solutions recently signed a partnership agreement with Nymi, to use wearable technology in Xyntek’s Turnkey Biometrics Authentication Platform.

Read more SMK Electronics Collaborates with CAARESYS to Develop Biometric Passenger Monitoring Technology

Xyntek uses Nymi Bands and other technologies such as iris and fingerprint scanning technologies into their operations and processes. These solutions bring significant improvements and efficiencies to complex and GxP controlled laboratory, manufacturing, and healthcare processes that require user authentication and electronic signatures to review/approve completion of critical process steps. Nymi's unique wearable authentication solution, activated by a user's biometrics, keeps workers continuously authenticated to facilitate rapid logins/e-signatures with just a tap of their wrist, said Xyntek in a press release.

“In the past a user's identity was verified based on what we know, such as our username/passwords/PINs or what we have, such as ID & access cards,” said Mac Hashemian, P.E., CEO of Xyntek. “Biometric authentication enables user identification based on who we are, by using unique physical characteristics such as iris patterns and fingerprints to allow access to extremely sensitive systems, information and/or environments. With digital transformation and the push for mobility, we now have to factor in "what extends us" to this equation. The Nymi Biometric wearable technology provides an additional level of flexibility that provides operators with a more efficient way to achieve compliance and security without compromising productivity.”

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Xyntek's platform is built around a high-availability centralized authentication service which transforms a user's biometric identity into their enterprise account credentials in seconds. Xyntek's biometric platform supports all standard biometric devices including fingerprints and iris scanners, and our new partnership will add wearable technology, Nymi Bands, to the platform.

Read more Zwipe and Tappy Technologies Announce Partnership to Launch Biometric Enabled Wearables Payment Solutions

“We are excited to be working closely with Xyntek and integrating the Nymi Bands into Xyntek's portfolio of solutions and services,” said Andrew Foxcroft, Vice President of Nymi. “There are many use cases in the Life Sciences GxP environments that can benefit from wearable authentication devices.  By combining our technology with Xyntek's Biometric Authentication Platform, we can address a number of important use cases featuring enterprise authentication that delivers data integrity and security, allowing highly regulated industries to achieve compliance and productivity.”

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Taiwan-based MediaTek unveiled Dimensity, the company’s family of powerful 5G system-on-chips (SoCs) offering an unrivaled combination of connectivity, multimedia, AI and imaging innovations for premium and flagship smartphones. Dimensity 1000 is MediaTek's first 5G mobile SoC in its 5G family of chipsets.

Read more MediaTek Launches New Multi-Mode 5G SoC to Power High-End 5G Devices

MediaTek’s Dimensity 5G chipset family combines smart connectivity and ultra-fast speed to power the world's most capable 5G devices. Dimensity represents a step toward a new era of mobility – the fifth dimension – to spur industry innovation and let consumers unlock the possibilities of 5G connectivity, said MediaTek in a press release.

“Our Dimensity series is a culmination of MediaTek's investment in 5G and positions us as a leader driving 5G development and innovation. Our 5G technology goes head-to-head with anyone in the industry,” said MediaTek President Joe Chen.

“We chose the name Dimensity to highlight how our 5G solutions are driving new waves of innovation and experiences, much like the fabled fifth dimension,” added Chen. “Our first announced chip, MediaTek Dimensity 1000, gives consumers a significantly faster, more intelligent and all-around incredible mobile experience.”

Read more MediaTek’s New MT8516 2-Mic Development Kit to Accelerate Integration of Alexa

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Features and technology in the MediaTek Dimensity 1000 include:

• World's First Dual 5G SIM: In addition to support for services such as Voice over New Radio (VoNR), the world's first dual 5G SIM technology delivers seamless connectivity across networks and offers consistent speeds.
• Most Power Efficient 5G Modem: The chipset's integrated 5G modem delivers extreme energy efficiency and is a more power efficient design than competing solutions. This compact, integrated design also lets brands use the extra space for other features like a bigger battery or larger camera sensors.
• Seamless Handover: With 5G carrier aggregation, the chipset posts higher average speeds and performs a seamless handover between two connection areas (high speed layer and coverage layer) for seamless high-speed connections when users are on the go.
• Unparalleled Imaging: With the world's first five-core image signal processor (ISP) combined with MediaTek's Imagiq+ technology, Dimensity 1000 provides a truly extraordinary camera and video experience. The chipset supports 80MP cameras sensors at 24 frames per second and a range of multi-camera options such as 32+16MP dual cameras.
• Powerful APU Camera & Video Support: The APU supports advanced AI-camera enhancements for autofocus, auto exposure, auto white balance, noise reduction, high-dynamic-range (HDR) and facial detection, along with the world's first multi-frame video HDR capability.
• Stunning Graphics and Video: The chipset delivers stunning graphics with support for Full HD+ displays up to 120Hz and 2K+ up to 90Hz. Dimensity 1000 is the first mobile SoC to support Google AV1 format up to 4K resolution at 60fps, elevating the video streaming experience to new levels.

The first Dimensity powered devices will start hitting the market in Q1 of 2020.

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International Data Corporation (IDC) has published a new IDC Innovators report profiling three companies – Bragi, Nuheara, and Waverly Labs – for taking a traditional audio-centric hearable device and augmenting it with new features and functionalities.

Read more Hearables are the Most Popular Choice of Wearables Among Consumers, Says IDC Report

Over the past five years, consumers have adopted wearable devices through fitness trackers and smartwatches. More recently, the introduction of new business and enterprise applications have started to bring these devices into the workplace. The same trend can be seen within a fast-growing segment of the smart earwear market, also known as hearables, where new capabilities are being added to the devices that expand the ways in which people communicate, reports Business Wire.

Hearables are technically advanced, electronic in-ear-devices designed for purposes ranging from wireless transmission to communication objectives, medical monitoring and fitness tracking. Hearables must also provide language translation on the device; and enable smart assistants at the touch of a button or through keyword detection, even if the assistant is running on another device.

“Hearables are quickly becoming the hot product within the wearables market, and while many focus on streaming audio and making phone calls, these companies help their wearers with personal and/or professional productivity,” said Ramon T. Llamas, research director with IDC's Mobile Devices team. “Two of these companies recognize and help solve the challenges that some people have simply to communicate, and the third adds new AI-based functionalities to other companies' hearable devices. The end result: wearers who communicate more easily and devices with extended usage and life cycles.”

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Read more Future Hearables Will Monitor Our Brains to Make Our Lives Better, Says Stanford Scientist

Here are what the 3 companies profiled in the report offer:

• Bragi helps its customers to develop smart audio products by enabling hearables to execute computing and data analysis on the device instead of the cloud using the smallest amount of power and memory.
• Nuheara is a hearing healthcare company that has developed situational-use hearable devices that augment a wearer's hearing in real time with amplification, noise reduction, and audio beamforming.
• Waverly Labs offers a hearable device that translates 20 languages in close to real time and expands the experience from understanding someone speaking in a foreign language to a two-way conversation.

IDC Innovators reports present a set of vendors – under $100 million in revenue at time of selection – chosen by an IDC analyst within a specific market that offer an innovative new technology, a groundbreaking approach to an existing issue, and/or an interesting new business model.

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Empatica, an MIT Media Lab Spin off that develops medical wearables using AI, announced their new smartwatch EmbracePlus built in partnership with Translational Research Institute for Space Health (TRISH). EmbracePlus was chosen by TRISH to be the first wearable to monitor the health of the astronaut crew that will board the first manned mission to Mars.

Read more Dialog Semiconductor Takes Pride in Helping Astronauts with Wearables in Space

EmbracePlus has been designed from the ground-up as a space-ready device suitable for health monitoring during deep space missions. EmbracePlus can support longitudinal diagnostics, giving astronauts actionable insights into their health without the need of wearing invasive instrumentation, said Empatica in a press release.

Empatica was chosen because of its track record and success in creating the first smart watch used in neurology to detect seizures, the Embrace2, which has received FDA clearance for both its hardware sensors and its software alerting algorithm. The brand new EmbracePlus will provide the highest quality measures for long-term medical sensing while functioning reliably and robustly, despite harsh and challenging environments. The device also offers powerful on-board advanced processing that can run custom AI algorithms to provide support to the wearer.

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Read more Astroskin Smart Shirt Will Monitor Astronauts’ Vital Signs in Space

The breakthrough features of EmbracePlus include:

• An e-ink face giving reminders and prompting the wearer with questions, facilitating engagement
• A powerful microcontroller unit (MCU), for running advanced AI algorithms
• A comfortable, swappable and customizable strap, which runs circuitry inside to power electrodes
• Customizable sensor data sampling
• Wireless communications and fast data streaming using Bluetooth 5
• Custom LED and photodiode configuration detects high-quality heart rate and heart rate variability
• Custom electrodermal activity sensing provides continuous changes in autonomic stress
• A portal with secure access to raw data and tools to ease the management of large studies
• On-wrist charging with a revolutionary new patent-pending sleek pod, ensuring the device never needs to be taken off unless the wearer wants to
• Waterproof package

Empatica will start shipping Embrace Plus in the summer of 2020.

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Honor has officially unveiled its Magic Watch 2 at an event in Beijing, China. The Magic Watch 2 comes in two sizes – 46mm and 42mm – and offers GPS, heart rate monitoring, sleep tracking and a virtual pace-setter.

Read more Huawei Honor Watch Magic Smartwatch: A Smaller Version of Watch GT but More Affordable

“Honor Magic Watch 2 is another strong product that helps to achieve the 1+8+N IoT strategy,” said George Zhao, President of Honor. “Honor Magic Watch 2 marks Honor's another big step in the brand's own ecosystem integration of connected smart products as well as the global wearable market. The Honor Magic Watch 2 cements our forward-thinking in smartwatch design and development of wearable products. Whether you are out for fitness training or work, Honor Magic Watch 2 will keep you at your optimal performance inside and out.”

The Honor Magic Watch 2 has a slimmer build than the first device, with small crowns. The watch supports 15 goal-based fitness modes including 8 outdoor and 7 indoor sports, from outdoor modes like running, hiking, cycling and triathlons to indoor pool swimming, free training and rowing machine etc., said a press release.

The smartwatch is also supported by 13 professional indoor and outdoor running courses from beginner to advanced levels. Whether you’re just starting out or already an experienced runner, Honor Magic Watch 2 is able to offer perfect courses and motivation to go further. The Magic Watch 2 is also packed with a virtual pace-setter with real-time actionable advice to help enhance workout efforts at the runner's pace.

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Equipped with Huawei TruSleep 2.0 technology, the Honor Magic Watch 2 can precisely track and diagnose 6 common types of sleep disorders and provide over 200 corresponding suggestions tailored to the user's sleeping habit to improve sleep quality. The watch can also detect stress level and provide suggested breathing exercises to help you to get some peace of mind with the support of Huawei TruRelax technology.

Read more Huawei Watch GT Comes to the US for $199 with Two-Week Battery Life

The smartwatch uses Huawei’s TruSeen, to track your heart rate 24/7 and send an alert when it goes above or below normal levels. With water resistance up to 50 meters, the Magic Watch 2 also performs well underwater to monitor the user's heart rate and record SWOLF score, distance, speed and burned calories. All personal health data can be synced to smartphone pre-installed the Huawei Health app, which helps users to keep records and learn better about themselves.

The price for the Honor Magic Watch 2 starts at $197 for the 42mm size and $208 for the 46mm size.

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People afflicted with Parkinson’s disease usually develop speech impediment; their speech become quieter and less clear that before the disease affected them. In many cases, these people improve their speech with speech therapy. Now, Purdue University researchers have developed a wearable device that can help people with Parkinson’s speak louder and more clearly, by working on a natural reflex that aids in overcoming difficulties with speech.

Read more University of Central Florida Researchers Developing Sensors to Detect Parkinson’s Disease in Seconds

The device, dubbed SpeechVive, uses a reflex to improve communication. It plays noise in a user’s ear when they are talking, which elicits the reflex, resulting in speech that is automatically louder, clearer and lower, reports Purdue University.

“Since the wearable device elicits a reflex, the patient does not need to remember to use therapy techniques to communicate in everyday life,” said Jessica Huber, a professor in Purdue’s Department of Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences, who developed SpeechVive. “When people with Parkinson’s disease cannot be heard or understood, they withdraw from communication exchanges, leading to social isolation. This device makes it possible for patients to continue to communicate with their loved ones well into their disease.”

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More than 1 million people in the United States are diagnosed with Parkinson’s, one of the most common degenerative neurological diseases.

The device was recently commercialized by SpeechVive Inc. it is already being made available to patients using VA hospitals and through other venues.

“We are working to develop additional routes for individuals to obtain the device,” said Huber, who is also the associate dean for research in Purdue’s College of Health and Human Sciences. “I enjoy developing and testing devices and therapies that can improve the quality of life for people with Parkinson’s disease.”

Read more Flytta Smartwatch: A New Approach to Parkinson’s Care

SpeechVive Inc is one of the companies selected for the Purdue Foundry’s Double Down Experiment, which consists of nine businesses ready to reach the next level with technologies designed to advance the world.

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Researchers at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) in Massachusetts have developed a prototype flexible sensor the size of a Band-Aid that will measure a baby’s blood oxygen levels, a vital indication of the lungs’ effectiveness and whether the baby’s tissue is receiving adequate oxygen supply. The wearable device, which is wireless and inexpensive, may allow sick newborns to leave the hospital and be monitored remotely.

Read more Wearable Motion Sensors Monitor Fetal Heartbeat, Could Save Unborn Babies

Ulkuhan Guler, assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering and director of WPI’s Integrated Circuits and Systems Lab, is leading the project focused on enabling sick, hospitalized babies to be untethered from wired sensors, so they can more easily and frequently be examined, held, and even allowed to go home. Guler and her team have developed a miniature oxygen monitor for babies, which measures blood gases diffusing through the skin and reports the data wirelessly, reports WPI.

“Extended stays in the hospital are costly and can be a strain on families,” said Guler. “And studies have shown that babies’ health improves when they are with their families. Our goal with this affordable, mobile device is to give doctors more flexibility in monitoring their patients both in the hospital and at home.”

Conventional method of measuring oxygen molecules involves sensors wired to a monitor. But Guler’s device can accomplish that wirelessly. Through an alarm or mobile app, the device also notifies hospital personnel or family members if the baby’s oxygen level begins to drop.

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The wearable device is designed to measure partial pressure oxygen (PO2), which indicates the amount of oxygen in the blood. PO2 is a more accurate indicator of respiratory health than a simple oxygen saturation measurement. And measuring the PO2 level via a noninvasive device attached on the skin is as accurate as a blood test, the WPI report said.

In another phase of her research, Guler plans to modify the wearable so that it can be used for adults with asthma and seniors with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD).

Read more Wireless, Soft, Flexible Sensors Show Promise in Monitoring Premature Babies

Guler is collaborating with Pratap Rao, associate professor of mechanical engineering at WPI, and Lawrence Rhein, MD, chair of the department of pediatrics and an associate professor at the University of Massachusetts Medical School. Ian Costanzo and Devdip Sen, both graduate students in electrical and computer engineering at WPI, also are working with Guler to create a chip that will eventually act as the heart for the wearable device.

“The concept of the technology is that if we have more accessible data for a person of any age, we’ll be able to better take care of these patients,” said Rhein, who has been advising Guler on what’s needed in a hospital and home setting. “The idea of noninvasive, untethered, accessible data collection opens up a whole new world of care.”

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