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Gestural technology is changing the way we
interact physically with technology. Myo, from
Canada-based tech start-up Thalmic Labs, is
a gesture-controlled armband that measures
electrical activity in the user’s muscles to
wirelessly control digital devices for hands-
free interaction. Scheduled to launch this
year, the Myo enables users to control audio
playback, direct remote-controlled devices
and scroll through web-page content. Its
appeal lies in the intuitive user interface.
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Artist Neil Harbisson was born totally colour
blind. In collaboration with Peter Kese and
Matias Lizana, he has created a lightweight
eye-piece that transposes light frequencies
of colours into audible sound frequencies.
Calling the device the Eyeborg, Harbisson
has created sono-chromatic artworks called
the Sound Portraits series, where he listens
to faces and colours their sounds. By pointing
his eyepiece at the different skin tone hues
on different parts of the face, he creates the
chord of a face. His ‘extra-sense’ blurs the
boundaries between sight and sound.
Wearable Technology
Innovators are exploring how to make technology
interact with and use the body as an interface,
extending the concept of wearable technology
beyond the fitness industry to medicine, art and
entertainment.
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The market for wearable technologies in
healthcare is primed for explosive growth and
projected to exceed $2.9bn in 2016, according
to Theo Ahadome, senior analyst at IMS
Research. "There is increasing clinical evidence
of the value of continuous physiological data
in managing chronic diseases and monitoring
patients' post-hospitalisation. As a result,
a growing number of medical devices are
becoming wearable, including glucose
monitors, ECG monitors, pulse oximeters, and
blood pressure monitors.”
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Technology such as Preventice's
BodyGuardian Remote Monitoring System
and Avery Dennison's Metria Wearable
Technology can seamlessly deliver patient
data to doctors. Start-ups are developing
new products, such as LumoBack's device
to help users improve their posture. Textiles
developed by AiQ Smart Clothing incorporate
sensors in clothes to collect data, improve
safety, monitor the environment and heat and
protect the body.
LUMOback posture
sensor
© 2013 LUMO
BodyTech, Inc.
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