Chips, software and platforms converge for wearable design

For healthcare providers, accurate diagnosis and treatment depends on a clear picture of an individual's health. Yet, healthcare providers rely on tests that only offer a static snapshot of an individual's ever-changing health dynamics.  Wearable electronics can directly address these concerns, providing individuals and their healthcare providers with a clearer picture of health trends.  The ability to review health data remotely through wearables promises measurable improvements in healthcare. According to the international Groupe Speciale Mobile Association (GSMA), a study noted that remote monitoring of patients with chronic heart failure could reduce re-hospitalizations by 72%. 

While fitness monitors have for years helped individuals track their heart rates around the clock, a new wave of more sophisticated wearables is looking to offer continuous updates of important diagnostic data. For example, one device combines an ambulatory blood pressure monitor, wireless ambulatory ECG, and wearable pulse oximeter into a sensor system that transmits data wirelessly to smartphones using Bluetooth.  Wearables are also gaining traction in treatment as well. A new therapy product combines a built-in blood glucose with wireless control of insulin injections administered by the small wearable insulin-delivery pod. This device can be worn continuously without risking noncompliance or compromising an active lifestyle.

Creating a wearable product for medical, health and fitness applications presents new and unique design challenges. Engineers must combine advanced sensor systems, low-power embedded systems, and wireless communications into the smallest possible biocompatible packages. At the same time, wearables like wristbands or others likely to be visible must offer the form and fit of an attractive fashion accessory – while still providing extended running time between infrequent charges.  For designers, one of the key challenges becomes addressing the conflicting requirements of power and performance. As a result, highly integrated ultra-low-power MCUs typically lie at the heart of wearable designs

Intel designed its Quark MCU specifically to target wearable and similar deeply embedded applications where low power and small footprint are more critical than raw performance. The initial Quark device, the X1000, integrates a 400MHz 32-bit core with SRAM, a memory controller, and multiple connectivity options.

To further help designers cope with the engineering challenges associated with wearables, component manufacturers are offering reference designs, design kits and development frameworks. For example, the wearables reference platform (WaRP) from Freescale is a comprehensive open source solution for wearable design.  WaRP combines the i.MX 6SoloLite ARM Cortex-A9 application processor, Xtrinsic MMA955xL Motion-Sensing Platform, and FXOS8700CQ 6-Axis digital sensor with Kinetis software.

Medical wearables promise to address ongoing concerns in the healthcare industry about the quality and immediacy of vital statistics. By providing ready access to the results of long-term monitoring, wearable technologies can deliver data that healthcare providers need to diagnosis health problems more quickly and accurately – and begin to address skyrocketing costs for treatment of chronic disease and pain. With the continued emergence of more advanced sensors, ultra-low-power MCUs, flexible electronics and packaging, wearables are finding application in medical, fitness and health arenas once the sole domain of expensive hospital equipment or at-home units. For developers, a growing list of reference designs and design kits offer a ready starting point for venturing into wearable products.