Wearables

Chemistry Approach for More Robust Soft Electronics

The approach could lead to more flexible health monitors, wearable devices, sensors, optical communication systems, and soft robotics.

Facility Focus: The Pennsylvania State University School of Engineering

Learn about the batteries, skin sensors, flexible antennas, and other cutting-edge research coming from Penn State Engineering.

Wireless, Wearable Transmitter

The wearable antenna bends, stretches, and compresses without compromising function.

Technology Enables Digital Communication Through Touch

The technology would enable transmission of information just by touching a surface.

Products of Tomorrow: September 2021

Water-sensing smartphone screens, a NASA-developed RF switch, and an ultrasound patch.

Solid-State Carbon Dioxide Sensor

Applications include wearables, airplane cabin monitoring, medical diagnostics, and indoor air quality measurement.

Device Powers Wearable Sensors Through Human Motion

A triboelectric generator made of flexible circuit boards creates electricity when the wearer moves.

Early Warning System for COVID-19 and Flu Using Wearables

The smart ring shows it’s possible to detect fever before you feel it.

Smartphone App Hears Ear Infections in Children

The app detects fluid behind the eardrum using a piece of paper and a smartphone’s microphone and speaker.

Electronic Tattoo Enables Uninterrupted Heart Monitoring for Extended Periods

This wearable device is placed on the skin to measure a variety of body responses, from electrical to biomechanical signals.

Products of Tomorrow: July 2021

Battery recycling, NASA's water treatment, and a wireless wearable transmitter.

Smart Sensors Are Improving Medical Care

Over the last 75 years, sensors have played an increasingly significant part in the advancement of medicine.

What’s New in MEMS Sensors for Wearables

MEMS sensors have been around for a long time, but requests from the market for new applications are driving upgrades in the technology.

Products of Tomorrow: June 2021

Head-up displays, health-monitoring sensors from NASA, and a pollen sponge.

Fully Recyclable Printed Electronics

Nearly 100% of all-carbon-based transistors are reclaimed while retaining future functionality of the materials.

Products of Tomorrow: May 2021

Conductive cellulose, composites testing, and a light-emitting tattoo.

Biometric Security System Based on the Human Heartbeat

The wearable prototype can stream, in real time, an identifying signature based on the electrical activity of a person's heart.

Smartphone-Based Diabetes Detector

This technology could be a low-cost, in-home alternative to blood draws and clinic-based screening tools.

Would You Wear On-Body Sensors?

This month’s Here’s an Idea episode highlighted a number of on-body sensors. Penn State professor Larry Cheng, for example, found a way to 3D-print a sensor directly on the skin (shown in the above...

Here's an Idea: Wearables

In this episode of our Here's an Idea podcast, we speak to engineers who are building a variety of wearables. And some sensors blend in more than others.

New Wearable Device Turns the Body Into a Battery

Researchers at CU Boulder have developed a new, low-cost, wearable device that transforms the human body into a biological battery. The device is stretchy enough that you can wear it like...

New Flexible and Highly Reliable Sensor

Real-time health monitoring and sensing abilities of robots require soft electronics, but a challenge of using such materials lies in their reliability.

Products of Tomorrow: March 2021

In-air UAV docking, digital communication via touch, and a computer-vision monitor for diabetes.

Laser Printing Technology for Waterproof E-Textiles

The next generation of waterproof smart fabrics can be laser-printed and made in minutes.

Stretchable Micro-Supercapacitors Self-Power Wearable Devices

A stretchable system can harvest energy from human breathing and motion.

Large-Area Flexible Organic Photodiodes Can Compete with Silicon Devices

The performance of flexible large-area organic photodiodes has advanced to the point that they can now offer advantages over conventional silicon photodiode...