Neil Harbisson is the first person to be officially recognised by a government as a cyborg. The colour-blind artist uses a device permanently fixed to his cranial bone which translates colours into a range of different sounds. He has become an icon of the global cyborg movement. The term cyborg – a short form of “cybernetic organism“ – refers to an entity that is a combination of a human being and technology. It sounds very much like science-fiction, but today’s cyborgs are more likely to be tech geeks looking to permanently enhance their bodies and human capabilities by implanting artificial components, or possibly people with a disability wanting to restore their health.

Mobile data medium in the hand

Cyborgs at present are mostly employing modest technical aids. Visitors to the Digiwell stand at the 2016 Cebit computer fair, for example, were able to have NFC chips the size of a grain of rice implanted between their thumb and index finger. These can be used as mobile data media, enabling the person to unlock a house door without using a key, for example. DIY-cyborg, bio-hacker and IT manager of Grindhouse Wetware Tim Cannon had such a device implanted as far back as 2013. He also has a chip fitted to his forearm which transmits his physical data to Android systems via Bluetooth, as well as incorporating LEDs which subcutaneously illuminate his tattoo. And he has a magnet in his fingertip, acting as a “sixth sense”. But at present, it is mostly about playing with gadgetry and curious experimentation with new technology.

Tuning for the brain

The prospect of also implanting chips into the brain in future as a means of tuning it is becoming increasingly realistic, however. Such “neuro-implants” already exist – in the form of cochlear implants, for example. Once established, the technology will be usable for a range of other applications. Memory chips are just one of the potential options. What at first sounds rather alien is something which many people can imagine doing: a 2015 survey by market research organisation TNS Emnid in Germany found that 51 per cent of those polled were in favour of having implants for improved concentration and memory. That is in line with the vision of the so-called “transhumanists”. They explicitly promote the use of technology for self-enhancement. Their leading proponent is US information theorist and futurologist Ray Kurzweil. Kurzweil predicts that neurosciences, IT and nanotechnology will converge over the next few decades, and sees the humans of the future as cyborgs who will optimise their brains by means of computer technology. That might well also entail linking the brain directly to the Internet and streaming information. Instead of the “Internet of Things”, it would be an “Internet of Us”; people themselves would be part of the Internet.

(picture credits: Fotolia: kaprikfoto)

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It’s something that can happen to any pet owner: in a moment of inattention, the house cat slips out through the gap in the door, or the dog is suddenly chasing off into the distance. If a beloved pet cannot be recovered, it’s a tragedy for all concerned. Animal protection organisation Tasso e.V. helped return almost 60,500 dogs and cats to their owners in 2015 alone. The organisation holds the largest central register of pets.

Unique identification

Tasso has been employing wearable technology to track lost pets for a number of years. A small transponder is injected under the animal’s skin as part of the registration process. The unit is a biopolymer or glass capsule containing a copper coil and a microchip. The copper coil acts as an antenna, activated for fractions of a second by radio waves when a scanner is held close to the location. The microchip holds the unique number of the transponder, which can be read via the antenna to identify the animal. The system has one disadvantage, however: the pet must first be found before it can be identified and returned to its owner.

GPS tracking

One solution is a GPS tracker attached to the animal’s collar. The smallest tracker, according to the manufacturer’s specification, is the petpointer from HergTech, which is just 14 square centimetres in size. Its GPS chip uses three satellite systems to track objects to within just a few metres in over 220 countries. Trackers use the mobile communications network to transfer the position data to the pet owner’s smartphone or PC from a built-in SIM card. The petpointer transmits the GPS positions at user-selectable intervals which can be changed at any time in an app.
Many trackers additionally feature Geofencing, which issues an alert if the pet moves out of a pre-defined area. The GPS tracker from Tractive offers another interesting feature: a digital light switch in the mobile app enables the pet owner to turn a light on the GPS unit on and off. This helps when searching for the pet in the dark, as well as enhancing safety when it is close to a road.

(picture credits: Fotolia: grafikplusfoto)

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While industry is still investigating, agriculture has acted: a survey by digital technology association Bitkom found that almost one in five of all farmers in Germany are already using digital applications classified as Industry 4.0-related. And among large farms with 100 staff or more, that figure even rises to one in three.

A thermometer in the ear

Wearables are especially useful for cattle husbandry. They can be used to continuously monitor the animals’ state of health, meaning that any disease can be picked up at an early stage. This reduces drug consumption, and often helps prevent the spread of disease through herds. One example of such a simple health-monitoring wearable is the system from TekVet. It comprises an ear-clip fitted on each animal, incorporating a thermometer which constantly measures the animal’s body temperature. A small radio transmitter sends the data from the sensor to solar-powered receivers installed in the farmyard or out in the fields. The receivers are connected to the farm’s network. This provides a continuous stream of data for analysis.

Cows can send text messages too

The solution from French real-time monitoring specialist Medria Technologies is somewhat more complex. Its Vel’Phone and HeatPhone products automatically send a message to the farmer when the cow is pregnant or is ready to mate. Special sensors in a collar measure the cow’s vital signs, record its activity and transmit the data to a collector installed in the cowshed or out in the field. The data collector is fitted with an M2M SIM card which enables it to send a text message to the farmer over the mobile network in the event of any irregularities in the cow’s health. The collected data is also transferred every 30 minutes via a mobile communications link to a server, where it is archived. The data is not only available as a text message on a mobile phone. Farmers are also able to track their cows’ vital signs online on the “Daily Web Services” Internet platform.
Rather than being a conventional wearable, the E-pill from Vital Herd is placed inside the body. The cow swallows the electronic pill, which remains in its stomach for the rest of its life. During that time, it continuously sends data to the farmer via a Cloud-based software program. Similarly to the Fitbit for humans, the E-pill collects data including body temperature, heart rate, respiratory rate, pH values and other health parameters, and alerts the farmer if any impending health problems are detected in the animal.

The GPS cowbell

There is always a risk that free-range cattle will escape or be eaten by predators. This is, incidentally, something which even farmers in Europe are experiencing more and more since the return of wild wolves. Wearable technology can offer a solution to such problems. For example, a South African company has developed a collar for sheep which emits a flashing light and a loud audible alarm when a predator approaches. The wearable detects the proximity of a predator based on the change in the sheep’s behaviour.
A Swiss study conducted in 2014 found that the traditional cowbell does not have a positive effect on the animal’s health, and instead recommended the use of GPS systems. A number of companies have since developed GPS trackers for cattle, including the Israeli firm Cattle Watch. It has created a comprehensive range of integrated solutions based on GPS transmitters. The collars not only monitor the animals’ vital signs and behaviour, but also use the GPS signal to detect cattle theft, for example. They also enable virtual fences to be set up, restricting the animals’ freedom of movement by giving them a slight electric shock as soon as they go somewhere they shouldn’t. If no wireless network is available, the farmer can also send up a drone to collect the data via a receiver from a height of up to 200 metres and then transmit it by Bluetooth to a smartphone.
These are just a few examples of how agriculture is getting more and more connected, but they do provide a glimpse into the future of wearables’ use in cattle husbandry.

(picture credits: Fotolia: texturewall)

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With the trend towards “Industry 4.0”, otherwise known as the Digital Factory, tools are needed which are capable of creating a simple interface between the human worker and the manufacturing process. Some of the early applications indicate that smart watches have the potential to do just that. They can be used to monitor and control production processes and machinery in a simple way via an app. Another potential application for a smart watch is to provide alerts, such as when a critical system state is reached. Complex processes, especially, can be made more efficient through the use of wearable technologies in production. For BMW, digitisation opens up new prospects for the advancement of innovative, employee-oriented production systems. “In the long term, we will be implementing these developments to further modernise the work environment in our plants,” says BMW AG production director Oliver Zipse. “Digitisation will bring new levels of flexibility and efficiency to a number of processes, which will be of lasting benefit to our employees. In future, people working in production will shape their own work environments much more than they do today. And the reduction in physically strenuous work will also benefit employees.”

Support in production

Smart watches were trialled as context-sensitive assistance systems as part of a pilot project at the BMW Group’s plants in Munich and Leipzig. The aim is for them to support staff directly in their work, and to simplify complex processes. For example, an employee is alerted by the smart watch if a vehicle with non-standard requirements is approaching on the line. The illuminated display and a vibrating alert provide a reminder that a different number of bolts need to be fitted at the next work step, for example. Christian Dunckern, the BMW Group’s Head of Technical Planning, comments: “Digitisation is offering increasing opportunities to enhance our production systems on many levels. But not everything that is technically feasible actually makes sense to do. The key is to focus on the added value for the business, and the best person to do that is the employee who is actively and continuously involved in the production process.”

Time recording for field staff

Dutch company Exact has developed an app for Android Wear and the Apple Watch by which staff who are frequently on the road can keep a constant eye on the latest business data, through the Exact Online Cloud-based enterprise software. The user’s smart watch is connected to their smartphone, serving as a digital extension of it. This enables users to check company bank balances or outstanding customer or vendor account balances with a quick glance at their wrist. The system also features automatic time recording for field staff. A notification is sent to their smart watch as soon as they arrive at the customer. The message is generated by cross-checking GPS coordinates against the customer’s address logged in the system. Once the message is confirmed, time recording starts automatically. When the employee leaves the location, the app registers that the appointment has ended and the employee can terminate the time recording function. The data is stored automatically in the system, and is available seconds later for accurate time billing or other internal processing. Exact product manager Remco Kroes comments: “We are continually on the lookout for ways to simplify business processes and to innovate. We very much see wearables as playing a role in that. A smart watch can be useful for time recording in particular.”

(picture credits: BMW AG)

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The demands on intralogistics systems in production and materials management are rising constantly, while advances in digitisation are opening up new ways to meet them. High-efficiency systems and upgrades generally incorporate this trend, utilising the ever larger volumes of data based on intelligent solutions.
One particular development in this field is being marketed by Munich-based start-up business Workaround. The ProGlove smart glove optimises the most-used “tool” in industry: the human hand. The ProGlove aims to make work processes in production, assembly and logistics faster, safer and easier. It also serves to enhance efficiency and quality.

Scanning by a hand movement

Equipped with motion tracking and RFID, the ProGlove provides visual and haptic feedback to the wearer, indicating for example whether the right tool has been selected or the correct work sequence is being followed. With the ProGlove’s barcode scanner function, scanning operations can be incorporated into the worker’s natural hand movements. The ProGlove records every item the wearer processes, every tool used, and every action carried out. Additional applications can be embedded into it, such as access management for secure areas. The direct feedback to the worker means mistakes are avoided. All in all, users save time and improve their work processes thanks to the free hand movements they perform.

Seamless integration into existing processes

The development of ProGlove is based on the idea that wearable electronics are particularly well suited to enhancing procedures for which such aids are already in use anyway. Ultimately, the development “merely” enhances the glove as an essential and protective aid. Gloves are already seamlessly integrated into existing processes and broadly accepted as essential aids, so no new tooling has to be introduced and established. The ProGlove is based on Intel’s Edison wearables development module, and is already available for piloting.

(picture credits: ProGlove: Bernhard Huber)

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Wearables have long since also gained a foothold in business. Great expectations are placed in the miniature electronic assistants in industry especially, as part of the Smart Factory and Industry 4.0 trends. Experts and businesses which are already trialling the use of wearables see particularly strong potential in so-called “smart glasses”. These intelligent glasses are able to communicate over the Internet, providing the wearer with continually updated information on the work at hand in a quick and easy way. The miniature devices reveal their full potential especially in conjunction with augmented reality, whereby information from the Internet is integrated into the wearer’s field of vision. This makes everyday working not only easier, but also safer and much more efficient.
A variety of technologies are being trialled to work with smart glasses. Key concerns in this are that the field of vision should not be restricted as far as possible, and colours should not be distorted. Another key objective is to minimise weight and cost. This is being achieved through two competing technologies: either the data is displayed in the field of vision by way of a mirror; or the images generated by a micro-projector are transmitted via an optical waveguide – a light-conducting material invisible to the human eye – integrated into the glass. The latter is the principle behind the glasses from French company Optinvent and Israeli manufacturer Lumus, for example. The advantage of it is that there is no display or monitor to impair the wearers’ vision; they are able to look through the waveguide. Moreover, these types of glasses are very light, and can be made relatively cheaply.

More efficiency in the warehouse

The glasses are comfortable enough even for an industrial worker to wear on the production line, for example. In fact, they are already in use, displaying step-by-step assembly instructions in the worker’s field of vision, for example. Logistics is another highly promising area of application for smart glasses. As one example, DHL Supply Chain recently carried out trials at its logistics centre at Bergen op Zoom in the Netherlands in conjunction with Ricoh Smart Glasses. For three weeks, ten of its warehouse staff wore Google Glass and Vuzix M100 smart glasses as picking aids. The “pick-by-vision” solution from Ubimax displayed all order information in the operative’s field of vision. Picking of individual items was confirmed by way of voice-controlled barcode scans using the camera built-in to the glasses. The glasses enabled wearers to keep their hands free, with no need for hand-held scanners or picking lists. The result was an immediate 25 per cent gain in picking efficiency. Jan-Willem De Jong, Business Unit Director Technology of DHL Supply Chain Benelux, comments: “AR-aided picking eliminates the need for superfluous hand movements, and is much more productive. Technology is a key aid for our staff, and offers our customers genuine added value.”

A smart helmet for industry

A number of manufacturers, including US company Daqri and Actemium in Germany, are integrating smart glasses into helmets and combining them with other electronic systems. The Smart Helmet from Actemium, for example, features multiple 360-degree cameras, WLAN, Bluetooth, GPS, a solid-state memory and an infrared transmitter along with the smart glasses. It displays graphical plant, engineering or operating information directly in the user’s field of vision. Industrial workers are able to view additional maintenance or repair guides, or can get assistance on machinery procedures from a remote expert, as well as receiving early warnings of safety risks. Users have both hands free at all times in order to carry out the manual operations unhindered. Frank Berger, Head of the Business Unit Actemium Smart Industry & Infrastructure Solutions, comments: “All customers can now experience Industry 4.0 live in their own factories – with Smart Helmets and an integrated AR solution which provides staff with the right information at the right time while on the move.”

(picture credits: Daqri)

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Smart patches offer the advantage that they are stuck directly on the skin. That minimises the risk of interference with measurements due to the motion and friction of the sensors on the skin, as can happen in the case of T-shirts with built-in sensors, for example. Moreover, patches are virtually invisible, and are very comfortable to wear.
Like the AmpStrip from FitLinxxs: it is a thin, sensor-covered unit which is as discreet and comfortable as a sticking plaster. It monitors heart rate, breathing, body temperature and posture round the clock. An interesting aspect is that FitLinxxs originally wanted to develop the patch for the fitness market, but then late last year announced that it was upgrading the AmpStrip for medical applications.

Help for diabetics

A patch which has already been turned into reality for the medical sector is the Diabetes Care FreeStyle Libre by Abbott. Instead of measuring their blood sugar by testing their blood, patients apply a plaster-like sensor, about the size of a 2 euros coin, to their upper arm. Using a tiny probe inserted directly under the skin, the sensor patch measures the glucose content in the intercellular fluid once every minute. Patients can read out the sensor at any time using a small scanner. The patch can be worn when showering, swimming and playing sports. It just has to be changed every two weeks.

Administering drugs automatically

A patch developed by researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) goes a step further: it not only measures data, but also automatically administers drugs when necessary. The flexible patch is made of a gel-type material incorporating temperature sensors, LED lights and microscopically small storage modules and ducts. They supply the patient with drugs as required. The sensors measure the skin temperature, and if it changes, drugs are automatically administered. The LED lights signal when the medicine in the patch’s storage modules is used up.

From wearable to trainable

Another example of the usefulness of smart patches is “UpRight”, a unit which is worn on the back to monitor posture. It is fitted with multiple sensors which track the movement of the back. If the wearer’s posture sags, sitting at a table with rounded shoulders for example, the patch vibrates to signal the wrong position. The product is one of the new generation of “trainables”, telling patients when their behaviour is wrong so that they can remedy it.

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Electronic devices worn on and around the body already offer lots of opportunities in medicine – but devices implanted inside the body are an even more exciting prospect. They not only enable data from internal organs to be recorded and analysed, but can also communicate directly with the nervous system.

The electronic pill

A relatively new category of such wearables is ingestibles: devices that people can swallow like a pill. The first such products are already on the market, and many more are in development. One example is the ingestible sensor from Proteus Digital Health. It checks that medication is being taken correctly, thanks to a sensor the size of a grain of sand embedded in the medical pill itself. As soon as the medication has been swallowed and reaches the stomach, the sensor reacts to the stomach acid and sends a signal to a smart patch worn by the patient. The patch is in turn connected to a smartphone, and via that to the Cloud. The linked app enables the patient or doctor to check that the medication has been administered in the right dosage and at the right time.

The deaf can hear

Other wearables have been implanted into the body for years, including cochlear implants, which were developed 30 years ago. They enable deaf people to hear again – provided their cochlear nerve is still intact. The devices convert sound into electrical pulses which stimulate the cochlear nerve in the inner ear. They consist of two elements: the implant with the electrode for the cochlea, which is implanted surgically behind the earphones into the cranial bone, and the voice processor with the transmitter coil, which is worn on the ear like a hearing aid. Depending on the type of hearing loss, there are also solutions which convert the signals transmitted by the audio processor into mechanical vibrations and relay them directly to the middle-ear structures. One such solution is the Vibrant Soundbridge implant from MED-EL.

Seeing again

Wearable technology also offers solutions for blind people. The Argus II system, for example, is a state-of-the-art neurostimulation unit which provides people with severe to high-level degeneration of the outer retina with some visual capability. It bypasses the non-functioning photoreceptors, stimulating the remaining functional retina cells. The Argus II retinal prosthesis captures visual images of the surrounding environment by way of a miniature video camera integrated into a pair of glasses. The images are converted into a series of small electrical pulses and relayed wirelessly to the electrodes implanted on the retina. The pulses stimulate the remaining retina cells, generating patterns of light that are registered by the brain. By learning to interpret those patterns, patients are able to regain some of their functional sight. Argus II has already been implanted into more than 100 patients worldwide.

Walking naturally

Medical wearables do not always have to be small and invisible, however. State-of-the-art prosthetics, which replace hands, arms or legs, also count as wearables. With active electronics, they incorporate functions which enable very natural movement. Like the Genium prosthetic leg from Ottobock, for example: it aids natural movement in every detail – without the wearer having to consciously control it. That is made possible by state-of-the-art computer, sensor and control technology. Thanks to that technology, the Genium responds intelligently to a wide variety of everyday situations, enabling the wearer to walk much more naturally than was previously possible with prosthetics. Built-in measurement sensors continuously monitor the current walking phase, taking into account factors including speed, acceleration, and also the positioning of the prosthesis. The bend of the knee joint or the pendulum motion of the lower leg is controlled accordingly. All this happens in real time. The Genium is intuitive, allowing the user to walk naturally and unselfconsciously.

(picture credits: OttoBock)

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Wearable electronic devices are a long-standing tradition in medicine – from hearing aids to heart pacemakers. They were not called wearables in the past, but that’s what they are. The advances being made by wearables for the consumer sector are today opening up entirely new possibilities in medicine, too. They involve the full range of wearables: from sensor caps to smart glasses.

Sensory clothing

French manufacturer Bioserenity, for example, has developed special clothing with built-in electronics for people who suffer from epileptic fits. Examining patients has always posed a major challenge to date, as months frequently go by before an appointment with a doctor can be made. Also, examinations using conventional equipment are time-consuming and quite complicated. So Bioserenity has developed a shirt and a cap incorporating various sensors. They monitor body functions such as brain activity and heartbeat, transmitting the data via Bluetooth to the patient’s smartphone. From there, the data is related to the doctor’s Cloud system, enabling the patient’s status to be tracked in real time and ensuring a rapid response to any signs of emergency.

More grip

The SEM Glove from Bioservo provides more of an actuator than a sensor function. It is intended to help the five per cent of people between the ages of 16 and 84 who suffer from a weak hand grip. Actuators are integrated into the glove. Sensors on the wearer’s fingertips detect any movement based on minuscule changes in pressure. The sensors activate miniature motors on the glove’s cuff. They in turn pull on artificial tendons sewn into the glove, thereby aiding the intuitive grip reflex of the thumb, ring finger and middle finger.

Airbag for the hip

The target group of Hip-Hope Technologies is senior citizens suffering from osteoporosis. To avoid hip fractures in the most extreme scenario, the company has developed a wearable in the form of a belt. The belt is fitted with a sophisticated fall detector system, comprising large numbers of sensors and incorporating intelligent logic. If the system detects an impending contact on the ground, it activates two airbags which greatly cushion the impact of the fall. The system simultaneously alerts pre-determined responders. It also features an emergency call button, monitors the wearer’s movement and uses a GPS system to locate the patient rapidly in the event of a fall.

Seeing through the skin

Smart glasses also offer major potential in medicine. One of the world’s first commercially available applications is the Eyes-On Glasses product from Evena Medical. It is a point-of-care ultrasound system which enables doctors to view blood vessels deeper down in the tissue in real time. The glasses project both an infrared light and ultrasound onto the patient’s skin. From the reflections, it generates a real-time anatomically exact view of the vascular system, leaving the hands permanently free. This means, for example, a nurse is able to very quickly find a vein for an injection without having to test repeatedly.

(Picture credits: Fotolia: Igor Serazetdinov)

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Micro-technology is already enabling the production of wide-ranging mobile diagnostic, monitoring and therapy systems today. And micro-electronic implants are also playing an ever greater role. Smart implants combine therapy and diagnostics to provide so-called “theranostics” in a single system. They integrate sensors, actuators and signal processing. State-of-the-art micro- and nano-technology methods help to hermetically secure the tiny components of the implants, so as to attain long-term stability and safety.

Small, but wow

“The life sciences industry is seeing rising demand for miniaturisation, micro-structuring and integration of optical and electrical functions in low-cost components,” affirms Peter Kirkegaard, CEO of Swiss company IMT Masken und Teilungen AG. IMT is responding to that demand by applying manufacturing technologies from the semiconductor industry. The company makes micro-channels, through-holes, electrodes, optical and electrical coatings, optical waveguides and lattices based on glass. The smallest structures are as little as 150 nanometres in size (by comparison: the smallest bacteria are about 300 nanometres long). Their applications include lab-on-a-chip systems.
The Erfurt-based CiS research institute has developed a special miniaturised, silicon-integrated sensor for wearables. The multi-spectral photoplethysmographic sensor detects the reflections of emitted infrared light beams. From this, measurement data for pulse rate, arterial oxygen saturation, heart rate variability or respiratory rate can be derived, as well as information on hardening of the arteries and signs of rising or falling blood pressure. The sensors are placed in the outer auditory canal. They use up to four LEDs of differing wavelengths to additionally record data from various tissue depths, and to detect and eliminate motion artefacts.

Robots in the bloodstream

Particularly striking examples of ever-advancing miniaturisation are nano-robots in the bloodstream which autonomously perform surgical procedures. The Max Planck Institute (MPI) for Intelligent Systems in Stuttgart has developed concepts in this field using two different micro-floats. The first is a type of clamshell which moves by opening and closing; the second is a screw which advances by rotating. It is just 100 nanometres in diameter, and 400 nanometres long. A rotating magnetic field applied from the outside sets the miniature screw in motion. The special floats are 3D-printed. All materials used, such as polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS), are biocompatible and non-harmful to the body. The researchers envisage that the nano-robots will one day deliver therapeutic agents directly into a tumour, for example. “Theoretically, based on the size of our structure, it is even conceivable that it could be used inside cells,” explains Peer Fischer, head of the Micro-, Nano- and Molecular Systems working group at the MPI for Intelligent Systems. In any case, the tiny devices will help to advance the use of minimally invasive procedures, improving their efficacy and shortening the time they take. It is likely to be a number of years yet before this science-fiction becomes reality, however.

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