Wearable technology is devices that are worn on, near, or inside the human body. It can be incorporated into accessories or clothing. They typically include sensors, a processor, a power source, and wireless connectivity. This allows them to collect/provide data (movement, biometrics, environment), process it, and communicate without specific user attention. Sensor technology includes smartwatches, fitness trackers, earbuds, and smartglasses. It also includes medical technology such as pacemakers, continuous glucose monitors, neuroprosthetics, exoskeletons. and dual-use technology such as night-vision devices.
Sensing devices can detect, analyze, and transmit information such as personal vital signs, and/or ambient data and may provide immediate biofeedback.https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2023-081228 Factors influencing smartwatch use and comfort with health data sharing: a sequential mixed-method study protocol Virtual reality and augmented reality devices complement/supplant human senses. Viewing devices display remote content. Mechanical aids enhance physical ability.
Wearable technology can encourage individuals to improve their lifestyle choices by providing feedback. Healthy behavior is encouraged by tracking activity levels and providing useful feedback to enable goal setting. This can be shared with interested stakeholders such as healthcare providers. Wearables are popular in consumer electronics, most commonly in the form factors of smartwatches, smart rings, and implants. Apart from commercial uses, wearable technology is being incorporated into navigation systems, advanced textiles (e-textiles), and healthcare. As wearable technology is being proposed for use in critical applications, like other technology, it is vetted for its reliability and security properties.
Devices that gather data must protect user privacy. Some data may be useful to health care providers, but care must be taken to ensure that it is not misused.
History In the 1500s, German inventor Peter Henlein (1485–1542) created small watches worn as necklaces. A century later, pocket watches grew in popularity as waistcoats became fashionable for men. Wristwatches were created in the late 1600s, worn mostly by women as bracelets.
Pedometers were developed around the same time as pocket watches. The concept was described by Leonardo da Vinci around 1500, while the Germanic National Museum in Nuremberg has a pedometer in its collection from 1590.
In the late 1800s, the first wearable hearing aids were introduced.
In 1904, aviator Alberto Santos-Dumont pioneered the modern wristwatch.
In 1949, American biophysicist Norman Holter invented the first health monitoring device. His invention, the Holter monitor, was one of the first wearable devices capable of tracking health data outside of a clinical setting.
VR headsets were first conceptualized in the 1950s and created in the 1960s. Cinematographer Morton Heilig created the Sensorama in 1962. It was a videogame -like device that was held up by a suspension device.
In 1967, French fashion designer Pierre Cardin created a collection entitled "robe electronique" that featured a geometric embroidered pattern with LEDs (light emitting diodes).
In 1968, the Museum of Contemporary Craft held a Body Covering exhibition that presented the infusion of technological wearables with fashion. The projects included clothing that changed temperature, dresses that lit up and produced noises.
On April 16, 2013, Google launch Google Glass, an eyeglass-like device that delivered text and notifications. The device had a 5 MP camera and recorded video at 720p. Its functions were activated via voice command, such as "OK Glass". The company also launched a companion app, MyGlass. The first third-party Google Glass App came from the New York Times, which was able to vocalize articles and news summaries. In early 2015, Google stopped selling the beta "explorer edition" of Glass, after criticism of its design and the $1,500 price tag.
In the 1970s, calculator watches became available.
From the early 2000s, wearable cameras were used as part of a growing sousveillance movement. Expectations, operations, usage and concerns about wearable technology emerged at the first International Conference on Wearable Computing. In 2008, Ilya Fridman incorporated a Bluetooth microphone into a pair of earrings.
Tech companies such as Apple, Samsung, and Fitbit created devices that send data to smartphones and personal computers to monitor activity and health.
In 2010, Fitbit released its first step counter.
Pebble reinvented the smartwatch in 2013, with a Kickstarter campaign that raised more than $10m.
McLear invented the smart ring in 2013, with its own Kickstarter campaign that raised $300k+. For wearables it introduced payments (including bitcoin), advanced secure access control, quantified self data collection, biometric data tracking, and health monitoring systems.
One of the first smartwatches was the Samsung Galaxy Gear. Apple followed in 2015 with the Apple Watch.
In 2014, Avegant introduceed Smart Headphones that use Virtual Retinal Display to enhance the Oculus Rift.
In March 2014, Motorola unveiled the Moto 360 smartwatch powered by Android Wear, a modified version of Android designed for smartwatches and other wearables. Apple announced the Apple Watch in September 2014.
At the Consumer Electronics Show in 2014, numerous wearable products were showcased, such as smartwatches, activity trackers, smart jewelry, head-mounted optical displays and earbuds.
In 2016 Google released their VR headsets, the Google Daydream. In 2016, Sony debuted its VR headset Project Morpheus.
ShiftWear makes a shoe that uses a smartphone application to periodically change the design display on the shoe. The shoe features a display along the midsection and back that shows a design. A prototype for the shoes was created in 2017.
In 2017 Snap introduced its AR glasses product Spectacles and Microsoft released HoloLens.
Jabra released noise canceling earbuds in 2018.
Usage
In the consumer space, sales of smart wristbands (aka activity trackers such as the Jawbone UP and Fitbit Flex) started accelerating in 2013. One in five American adults had a wearable device, according to the 2014 PriceWaterhouseCoopers Wearable Future Report.
In sports, wearable technology has applications in monitoring and real-time feedback.Duncan Smith The Rise of the Virtual Trainer July 13, 2009 Product Design and Development Examples include accelerometers, pedometers, and GPS's that can measure an athlete's energy expenditure and movement pattern.
In cybersecurity and financial technology, secure wearable devices have captured part of the physical security key market. McLear and VivoKey developed products with one-time pass secure access control.
In health informatics, wearable devices have enabled better capturing of human health statistics for data driven analysis. This has facilitated data-driven machine learning algorithms.
In business, wearable technology helps managers monitor employee locations and activities. Employees working in a warehouse have increased safety around chemicals or heavy equipment. Smart helmets are employee safety wearables that use vibration sensors to alert employees of possible danger.
In child care, wearable breast pumps allow hands-free breastfeeding.
Applications
Health Many wearable products monitor health. This started as early as 1980 when wireless ECG was invented. Later research produced textile-based, tattoo, patch, and contact lens devices as well as the notion of the "quantified self" and transhumanism.
Health wearables can monitor: Heart rate (ECG and HRV) Muscle oxygen saturation (SmO2, EMG) Sleep patterns Stress levels Fertile periods Energy score Blood oxygen Body composition Calories burned Steps walked Blood pressure Release of certain biochemicals Time spent exercising Seizures Physical strain Body composition and water levels Brainwave (EEG)
Typically, multiple monitoring functions are handled by a single device, such as an activity tracker or a smartwatch. Some devices can identify serious medical conditions such as seizures, sleep and movement disorders.
Medical uses
Wearable monitoring systems for assisted living and eldercare can improve safety and accelerate diagnosis. Algorithms can glean valuable information from the collected data.
Other possible applications include:
Monitoring of glucose,University press release: alcohol, and lactateUniversity press release: or blood oxygen, breath monitoring, heartbeat, heart rate and its variability, electromyography (EMG), electrocardiogram (ECG) and electroencephalogram (EEG), body temperature, pressure (e.g. in shoes), sweat rate or sweat loss, levels of uric acid and ions – e.g., for preventing fatigue or injuries or for optimizing training patterns, including via ingested electronics Forecasting changes in mood, stress, and health Measuring blood alcohol content Measuring athletic performance Monitoring illness severity Detecting early signs of infection Long-term monitoring of heart and circulatory problems Health risk assessment applications, including measures of frailty and risks of age-dependent diseases Automatic documentation of care activities Days-long continuous imaging of diverse organs via a bioadhesive stretchable high-resolution ultrasound imaging patchNews article: or e.g., a wearable continuous heart ultrasound imager. (potential novel diagnostic and monitoring tools) Sleep tracking Cortisol monitoring for measuring stressUniversity press release: News article: Measuring relaxation or alertness, e.g., to adjust their modulation or to measure efficacy of modulation techniques Continuous monitoring of protein biomarkers for diagnosis and monitoring of chronic diseases
Proposed applications Proposed applications, including applications without functional wearable prototypes, include:
Tracking physiological changes such as stress levels and heartbeat of "experiencers" or "contactees" of the UFO-sighting, anomalous physiological effects and alien abduction/contact/sighting phenomena, including "experiencer group research" Pathogen detection and detection of hazardous substancesNews article: Improving sleep via sleeping caps
COVID-19 Wearable technologies have been developed in order to help with COVID-19 diagnosis. Oxygen levels, antibody detection, blood pressure, heart rate, and so much more are monitored by sensors within these devices.
Symptom detection Smart lenses On-teeth sensors Face masks Smart textiles Electronic epidermal tattoos Microneedle patches Wristbands Smart rings Smartwatches Fitness trackers have been used to help detect symptoms. Monitors detect heart rate, blood pressure, oxygen level, etc.
Estimation and prediction techniques is flawed due to the inability to differentiate other illnesses from COVID-19. Elevation in blood pressure, heart rate, etc., as well as oxygen level fluctuations can be attributed to illnesses ranging from the common cold to respiratory diseases. The inability to differentiate them has caused "unnecessary stress in patients, raising concern on the implementation of wearables for health."
Remote monitoring devices and Internet-of-Things (IoT) systems can help manage chronic illnesses through remote patient care and shared decision-making. However, policy and implementation efforts remain vital to fully harness digital health potentials while ensuring equitable access.
Military
Wearable military technology aids education, training, and sustainability.
Military education primarily tracks soldiers' vitals, including heart rate, blood pressure, emotional status, etc. Tracking vitals can indicate emerging environmental threats to the soldiers.