Soon, wearable technology for personalised health alerts

Researchers are working on developing a wearable technology that would help troops and civilians to get personalised health alerts, it has been revealed.

The sensor and software development company has been working with UB engineering professor Albert H Titus to create wearable technology that fuses real-time medical and physiological data with computer models. The system would then send personalised alerts indicating when the individual's level of stress, fatigue and resilience may put them in danger.

The wireless system, which is under development, will feature a series of electrodes that measure heart rate, brain activity and other vital signs. The electrodes may be attached to the skin like a Band-Aid or sewn into clothing that hugs the skin, researchers are still deciding the best method.

The electrodes will relay information to a sensor (slightly smaller than a dime, attached to the skin like a patch), which will deliver that information to a remote computer network.

As the information enters the computer network, it will fuse with Sentient's DigitalClone Live software, which has been validated by NASA and used to test the materials and components in the Hubble telescope, the F-35 fighter jet, wind turbines and other products.

In addition to serving the armed forces, the technology has commercial applications as a health-monitoring device. Sentient is exploring how the sensor can be applied to everyday items such as baseball caps. The individual wearing the cap would receive personalised health alerts regarding their risk of suffering a heart attack and other potential danger.