Wearable System for Health and Environmental Tracking

ASSIST’s Health and Environmental Tracker (HET) systems integrate low-power physiological and environmental sensors into unique wearable devices that provide monitoring opportunities not previously available. These devices also support development of future self-powered systems.

HET system uses chest and wrist-based monitoring to correlate ECG, pulse, and activity monitoring with environmental exposure data. Communicates over BLE to smart device for ultra-low power consumption and long sensor lifetime.

ASSIST’s HET systems are being developed in multiple generations, each supporting a different use case. The first-generation HET system supports individuals managing chronic respiratory disease. In this system, a wrist-worn band provides real-time monitoring of the wearer’s pulse rate, activity, and environmental ozone exposure. An accompanying chest patch monitors the wearer’s electrocardiogram, pulse rate, and activity. Together, the wrist band and chest patch are enabling studies of the correlation between ozone exposure and physiological parameters in individuals who suffer from asthma, as compared with those who do not. One goal is to determine if these devices are capable of predicting exacerbated asthma conditions hours before they occur.

ASSIST’s second-generation HET systems support diet management and wound care, enabled by biochemical sensing devices that can monitor biomarker levels in sweat, interstitial fluid, and wound exudate. Biochemical detection is achieved through the use of a potentiostat frontend. This circuitry has been developed in both a plugin board form factor for the wristband as well as a standalone control board for interfacing to patch designs. The third-generation system is targeted at medication management.