The war-gadget arsenal continues to grow and grow. The latest entry in the government’s attempt to seamlessly merge video games and the horrors of war is the Individual Gunshot Detector, brought to in a joint effort by the US Army and a company called QinetiQ.
What does it do? Well it comes packed in with an acoustic monitor, that is especially tuned to the sound of approaching bullets. It comes with a wearable display that lets the soldier know where the bullets emanated from, and thus, how to avoid them. Gee, that actually sounds pretty cool. Let’s consider the paintball and even football implications. Receivers could wear them and go toward the sound!
13,000 of these units are being shipped to Afghanistan this month, with an additional lot of 1,500 to be sent there ..read more
Posted in: Environmental Monitoring, Sound
Japanese researchers at the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology have begun working their magic within the realm of wearable tech. The institute have been conducting research with weaving capacitive touch into large-area textiles. The reason for this? For cool techy clothes of course.
The researchers have begun integrating capacitive touch sensors into 1-micron thick nylon fibers. The result? Fabric that can sense your touch and send related messages to nearby computers. One obvious use would be in hospitals, where sheets could inform doctors of any changes to a patient.
AIST also wants to send the tech to the consumer world, too. No word on how this will go down and when our favorite t-shirt will react lovingly to our touch. Hopefully soon. I’m lonely.
Here is a video of the ..read more
Posted in: Clothing, Concept Design, Environmental Monitoring, Vitals Monitoring, Wearable Tech
Working out is hard, um, work. Why not make it a bit easier, right? Under Armour hears your flabby, flabby pleas and have readier their E39 performance shirt. This amazing little doo-dad uses electric compression to give you the workout of your dreams.
The shirt comes equipped with with a triaxial accelerometer, processor, and 2GB of storage joined by additional monitors that measure the wearer’s heart rate and breathing. Your biometric data is then analyzed to show you what you are doing wrong and right with your workout. A clue: Sitting on your couch and eating nachos is probably gonna fall on the “wrong” side of that equation.
The NFL has already equipped a handful of players with the E39 shirts. Want more information? Check out this video.
Posted in: Environmental Monitoring, Shirt, Under Armour, Wearable Tech
The world of hat technology has hit some cool strides as of late. NeuroSky kicks it up even further with their bizarre Brain Athlete golf visor. This golf visor comes complete with a batch of EEG sensors that will measure your brain waves as you play your favorite leisurely sport. Don’t worry, it can measure your brainwaves even when you aren’t on the links also.
How is this useful? Well trainers can measure the results in real time as the information is sent into the cloud. This would be good for figuring out if you are the next Tiger Woods, be it in the golfing world or the world of seduction. Short answer, you are probably not but you can still dream!
The visor cap is available now but comes from Japan ..read more
Posted in: Environmental Monitoring, Hats, Intelligent Clothes, Wearable Tech
Some wristbands actually cause stress, so it’s to good know some companies are making it their business to monitor it. Affectiva has released their Q-Sensor, the wristband that monitors and logs when you are feeling a bit anxious or stressed. Best of all, this bracelet can send the information to pertinent caregivers thus letting the right people know before a panic attack or something similar.
The company says the Q sensor “is able to “detect and record physiological signs of stress and excitement by measuring slight electrical changes in the skin.” To put it in laymen’s terms, the bracelet looks for subtle changes in moisture and assigns that a stress level. People sweat when they anxious. Some people sweat all of the time but there is no bracelet for that ..read more
Posted in: Affectiva, Armbands, Environmental Monitoring, Wearable Tech
This concept from Hitachi could do wonders for your shame-based workout routine. The Hitachi Life Microscope is, in essence, a run of the mill fitness monitor. But the company purports that this fitness monitor can track just about everything you do in a day.
The Life Microscope can, for instance, tell the difference from when you are running, eating or playing video games. Sleeping too. Then it sends all of your day’s data to the PC of your choice where it can be analyzed or laughed at depending on your exercise level.
The company says it is working to get the data transferable to watches as well. Again, this is just a concept but we’ll have more information on this as it develops. In the meantime, go for a walk.
Posted in: Concept Design, Environmental Monitoring, Hitachi
You got smart just about everything in this world. Now it’s underwears turn. Nanoengineers at UC San Diego, along with a grant from the US government, have created the world’s first pair of sweat-monitoring underwear. People with sweaty balls just retreated into their rooms in shame. Sorry guys.
The project is still early in development, but there is a video chronicling their progress. Check it out here.
Posted in: Environmental Monitoring, Underwear
Armband tech has grown in leaps and bounds in recent years. Some are miniature computers. Some offer USB storage. Some even let you know how fat you’ve become. Enter the Ki Fit, the armband that tracks your vital stats.
The Ki Fit monitors a ton of stuff, actually. Your sleeping and calorie burning rates all fall under its purview. It’s a cool little gadget with a fairly hefty pricetag. $300 plus a $20 monthly subscription price. Maybe you should just that money for a gym membership and a new mattress, yes?
Well, ok, probably not.
Posted in: Armbands, Environmental Monitoring, Ki Fit, Vitals Monitoring
For the hearing and vision impaired, the world can be very limiting. Silent Call tries to provide a level of freedom for these people. The Silent Touch provides visual and vibration for certain events. Events such as doorbell, phone, smoke alarm, fire alarm, burglar alarm trigger the watch to activate within a 300 foot range.This watch works with the Sidekick II system from Silent Call. Silent Call has wake up alarms and mattress vibrators to alert the owner. The vibration changes with the type of alert. The Silent Touch watch sells for $150.00 and the charger for $117.65. A kit that includes the watch, charger, and bed vibrator costs $289.00.
Posted in: Display, Environmental Monitoring, Intelligent Clothes, Mobile Phone Integration, Mobile Phone Technology, Safety, Silent Call, Sound, Tactile Feedback, Watches
Solestrom is back at it again. To add to the UV detecting SmartSwim swimsuit, and the SmartSwim Solar Tote, here is a less nerdy version of their products.Instead of having a readout on your waist, the beads of this suit are photo-chromatic. Using this concept is less accurate but much more stylish. The degree of color reflects the UV level. For $98.99 you can own a practical smart suit. Solestrom keeps you safe and stylish.
Posted in: Environmental Monitoring, Solar Fashion, Solestrom Swimwear, Swimwear
