siliconindia | | June 20198IN MY OPINIONSMARTER LIVING: PAST AND FUTURE TRENDS IN WEARABLE TECHNOLOGYearables are on the rise and have transformed various products designed for more intelligent living. From fit-ness trackers and virtual reality headsets to smart-watches and health monitors, wear-able technology has become a way for people to lead smarter and healthier lives. Whether in healthcare, aviation or manufacturing, wearable technol-ogy is paving the way for the future. Wearable devices for digital health, in particular, are expected to have a significant impact on the digitization of healthcare and provide solutions in early diagnostics, remote monitoring, personalization, and prevention. These positive changes will result in health-ier lifestyles and overall health care cost savings.History of the Wearable IndustryThe wearable industry has a long his-tory dating back to spectacles. In the 1970s, wearable devices were mod-ernized with tiny computers starting with the invention of the calculator watch and later the Sony Walkman. Mainstream popularity of wearable technology did not occur until the early 2000s when Bluetooth headsets hit the market. Jawbone, my previ-ous company, was one of the first to launch smart Bluetooth headsets with active noise canceling technology. The use of sensors to detect jaw move-ment in these headsets established the company's expertise in sensors and movement detection.Jawbone then forayed into wear-able wristbands for daily lifestyle ac-tivity and sleep tracking, and launched the first wrist worn tracker in Jawbone UP. This product opened the door to a new category of wearables and led to products such as the Apple watch, Fitbit Charge, Google Glass, Garmin and Nike+ wearable devices becom-ing icons. Smartwatches and fitness trackers were responsible for making 2014 "The Year of Wearable Tech-nology." Today, wearables have ex-panded from entertainment, commu-nication and fitness into various other industries including healthcare, retail, manufacturing and transportation. As of 2016, wearables were estimated to be a $19.6 billion industry, and it has been instrumental in fueling more intelligent living.Role of Hardware and SensorsThe wearable technology trend has seen a transformation from short-term growth of basic products to long-term growth and opportunities with smart ones. Basic wearables such as the Jaw-bone UP and Fitbit Charge have min-iature sensors such as 3-axis acceler-ometer that can capture physiological data based on a person's activity. More advanced sensors and technologies such as optical heart rate, inertial mea-surement units, GPS and temperature sensors can be found in premium fit-ness trackers, smart watches, and clin-ical wearables. These advanced wear-ables have the capability of tracking a wearer's vital signs, physiological and surrounding environmental data using multiple sensors, along with the inte-gration of third-party data.Advanced wearables have a big ad-vantage over basic devices. Advanced devices have features that allow con-tinuous monitoring, various modes of connectivity, and data processing both on the device and in the cloud with machine learning algorithms and artificial intelligence (AI). The new complete system including hardware, user experience, user engagement, and software applications with the integra-tion of AI will revolutionize the health-care industry and redefine the future of health care. Those days are not far By Dileep Goyal, Vice President, Devices, Jawbone HealthDileep is a veteran in wearable technology and led the production of millions of bluetooth headsets, speakers and wristband trackers. He is currently leading next generation sensor development, device engineering and manufacturing operations at Jawbone Health. Jawbone Health is a new startup building a personalized service that utilizes continuous health data combined with human and machine intelligence to take care of members on a daily basis.WDileep Goyal
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