Categories >> Measurement Technologies >> Wearables
Human wearables, also known as wearable technology, are electronic devices designed to be worn on the body, primarily used to collect and analyze personal data like vital signs, movement, and environmental factors through embedded sensors, allowing users to monitor their health, fitness, and other aspects of daily life, with common examples including smartwatches, fitness trackers, and smart glasses; these devices often sync with smartphones to display and further analyze the collected data. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]
Key points about human wearables: [3, 6, 7]
• Function: Wearables utilize sensors like accelerometers, gyroscopes, heart rate monitors, and GPS to gather data on physical activity, sleep patterns, location, and more. [3, 6, 7]
• Applications: [1, 2, 3]
• Health and Fitness: Tracking steps taken, calories burned, heart rate, sleep quality, and providing personalized health insights. [1, 2, 3]
• Medical Monitoring: Continuous monitoring of vital signs for individuals with chronic conditions like diabetes or heart disease. [1, 7, 8]
• Productivity and Convenience: Accessing notifications, controlling smart home devices, making payments, and hands-free communication. [1, 2, 9]
• Common types of wearables: [1, 2, 4]
• Smartwatches: Multifunctional devices with displays offering various features like fitness tracking, notifications, and app access. [1, 2, 4]
• Fitness trackers: Primarily focused on activity monitoring, step counting, and basic health metrics. [1, 2, 3]
• Activity bands: Simple wristbands with basic movement tracking capabilities. [3, 5, 9]
• Smart glasses: Eyeglasses with integrated displays providing information overlays. [2, 4, 10]
• Hearing aids: Advanced hearing aids with connectivity features. [2, 4, 9]
• Concerns and challenges: [4, 11, 12]
• Privacy: Concerns about the large amount of personal data collected by wearables. [4, 11, 12]
• Accuracy: Variations in data quality depending on the device and user habits. [12, 13]
• Battery life: Need for frequent charging can be inconvenient. [3, 12]
• User adoption: Ensuring comfortable design and ease of use to encourage consistent wear. [2, 3, 4]
[1] https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9330198/
[2] https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=4774084
[3] https://www.techtarget.com/searchmobilecomputing/definition/wearable-technology
[4] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wearable_technology
[5] https://www.happiestminds.com/insights/wearable-technology/
[6] https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/engineering/wearable-sensor
[7] https://gkc.himss.org/resources/wearable-technology-applications-healthcare-literature-review
[8] https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2667096824000831
[9] https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/engineering/wearable-technology
[10] https://www.media.mit.edu/projects/wearable-lab-on-body/overview/
[11] https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9931360/
[12] https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10708748/
[13] https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8402237/