Brain Computer Interfaces & connected medical devices

Everything is "smart" these days, it seems, especially when it comes to gadgets designed to help people improve their health and boost fitness levels. Smart mirrors and body scanners, smart running socks, a smart vest, smart drinking cups, smart sleeves and smart sleep masks are all now available, or will be soon. Many of these Internet of Things things are wearables — except for the "naked 3D" full-body mirror, of course— while others are designed to be carried in a pocket or clipped to a belt or bra.

The Verge has independently confirmed through sources that Jawbone is trying to sell its audio business. Jawbone had also explored licensing its audio tech rather than selling off that part of the business entirely, a source says. But that's not entirely surprising, given that Bluetooth speakers have become so commoditized; Jawbone also hadn't released a new speaker since 2013, and its most recent Bluetooth headset was released in early 2014.

Engineers at the University of California San Diego have developed the first polyester wearable device capable of monitoring both biochemical and electric signals in the human body

The tech industry is sometimes lambasted for making frivolous apps — do we really need a dating app for bacon lovers? But that's not all the next crop of entrepreneurs is working on.

Afero works with large hardware makers who install the startup’s proprietary chip in their IoT devices or components.
The chips, which have been licensed to and are being manufactured by Murata, become identifiers for the gadgets they’re installed in. They interact with router-like hardware to process data as it passes between a gadget and apps in the cloud. The “router” in this equation could be a user’s smartphone, or standalone devices made by Afero.

The 29-year-old CEO of My.Flow, Amanda Field, had the idea for the device during a class project on wearable technology at UC Berkeley. Field went on to pitch her idea to HAX, the world’s largest hardware accelerator, after graduation. She was sent to China to develop the prototype with friend and future co-founder, Jacob McEntire, who was then working on a “smart vibrator.”

Physicians with access to the QardioMD portal can invite patients to share their blood pressure and heart rate information with them. The platform is HIPAA compliant and actually shares more than just blood pressure information. Qardio has also created the QardioBase and QardioCore devices. QardioBase is a weight scale and QardioCore is a 3 lead ECG. Information from these devices can be evaluated by physicians using the app as well.

Cooey is an end-to-end health-monitoring IoT platform provider that allows the users to collect, store, analyze and share their medical summary with a doctor. It provides insights and personalized health tips to patients based on their medical profile. Further, it helps connect users with various healthcare service provides to get personalized services, viz., medicines, lab tests, or homecare services, delivered to their doorstep.

You may never have heard of Validic, but if you’ve ever sent your doctor data from your Fitbit, smart scale, glucose meter or another wearable device or health tracker, chances are Validic was involved. The North Carolina-based startup connects with more than 270 of the myriad health-monitoring devices on the market, collecting data from more than 223 million people across the world who have agreed to let Validic’s customers monitor their fitness and wellbeing.

Target is entering the connected healthcare space.
The retail giant will begin placing connected healthcare devices in 550 U.S. stores, according to TWICE. These devices encompass 14 medical-grade products, such as wireless scales and blood pressure monitors.

The fight to drag the healthcare system kicking and screaming into the 21st century often overlooks the little picture in favor of larger systematic fixes. But for many users on multiple meds, the only thing standing between them and an incorrect or missed dosage is a big, plastic box from the drugstore sporting embossed letters of the days of the week.

“This round of funding will allow Nima to deliver on its mission of creating a range of devices that test food for various proteins and substances beyond gluten, helping as many people as possible live their healthiest lives,” Nima CEO Shireen Yates said in a statement. “The Nima brand is widely accepted and synonymous with our company and products, and this focus will strengthen our marketing approach as we prepare to launch new products on the Nima platform.”

Medisafe, a company with offices in Boston, MA and Haifa, Israel is releasing a new smart pill management system that keeps tabs on when you take your meds and reminds you when you don’t. The Medisafe iConnect lets you choose to use the Bluetooth equipped iCap, that screws onto regular pill bottles instead of the original caps, or the iSort weekly pill organizer that also talks to your smartphone or tablet over a Bluetooth wireless connection.

NHS patients with long term illnesses could soon be able to monitor their conditions remotely through high-tech clothing and wearable gadgets which will link directly to their medical records, under new proposals announced today.

The problem with doctors is you only see them after you're sick. Prevention is preferable. A new generation of wearable sensors is finally living up to that promise by letting patients get constant, personalized care wherever they go. The convergence of several innovations—small, efficient electronics, smartphone-enabled telemetry and digital patient data—is now opening the way, defeating past barrier

BioMonitor 2 is inserted subcutaneously through a minimally invasive process under local anesthesia. The device provides a flexible antenna and positioning, adapting easily to a patient's anatomy, while providing unmatched sensing amplitude that ensures reporting accuracy. BioMonitor 2 also features BIOTRONIK's ProMRI technology, ensuring patients have access to full-body magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans (both 1.5T and 3.0T) as needed throughout their lifetime.

Although connectivity among medical devices is not new, the Internet of Things (IoT), or the Internet of Medical Things if you will, is gaining traction as the healthcare industry has been increasing efforts to improve quality and the continuum of care.