Modwells: Personal Modules for Wellness

[gallery] I'm currently working on a new project around the topic of healthcare and wellness. The project includes a variety of garments with integrated technology, which I'm currently designing. So stay tuned for an update on the progress. In the meantime, here's a short description:

Modwells is a new consumer-focused healthcare experience that is integrated into our daily lives and aimed to improve our physical and emotional health toward a better quality of life. It is modular, customizable, scalable, wearable and social.

The modwells system includes:

  • mods: a collection of sensors that collect and assess your health
  • trestle: a devices that allows you to view the data that you collect, recharge your pebbles and customize them
  • accessories: a collection of accessories and garments that allow you to extend the mod’s capabilities
  • application: allows you to manage your experience

Continue reading about Modwells here. Read about the initial research here.

Vega Wang's Into the Deep collection

[gallery] Wearable technology can be broken up into many categories such as practical, medical, performance, and expressive (among many others). There have been a lot of explorations in the expressive category lately that integrate LED's and Electroluminescent lighting into clothing.

Fashion designer Vega Wang has joined in the dialogue with her gorgeous Into the Deep collection that consist of light-emitting garments. "The concept for my collection came from watching a BBC DVD called Deep Blue. After watched it, I was in shock. It was only in 2002 that we became technologically advanced enough to get that deep into the ocean, 4000-5000 meters, and when they got down there, they discovered that at this depth, where there’s absolutely no sunlight, there are creatures that create their own light. I wanted to present these amazing creatures to the world." Continue reading her interview.

Images from The Creators Project More light-emitting garments

Exploring the relation between technology and intimacy

[gallery] The Intimacy series is a project by Daan Roosegaarde, Maartje Dijkstra, Anouk Wipprecht, V2_ Lab (Simon de Bakker, Stan Wannet, Piem Wirtz) and the team of Studio Roosegaarde (Peter de Man, João Carneiro). It consists of a growing number of gorgeous and evocative projects that investigate the relationship between technology and intimacy while considering the worlds of fashion, wearable technology and the electronic arts. The projects have already achieved international exposure and are often showcased in events and museums, helping to feed the ongoing dialogue about our contemporary technology-driven society.

The first of the series, designed by fashion designer Maartje Dijkstra titled Intimacy White, is made out of white e-foil that turns transparent to reveal the body based on your interactions with it (such as your proximity to the wearer).

The second dress, designed by fashion designer Anouk Wipprecht titled Intimacy Black, uses a newer version of the e-foil that transforms from black to transparent.

"The project[s] consist of high-tech garments made with wireless, interactive technologies and smart foils, which can become transparent. The distance towards the garments determines their level of transparency, creating an intimate experience and a sensual play of disclosure." continue reading on V2_Lab.

Images from V2_Lab.

Measuring physical activity

There's a ton of exploration going on in the healthcare space with regards to useful wearable technology applications.  Michigan State University's departments of Electrical Engineering and Kinesiology are investigating a wearable sensor network that measures a person's physical activity and overall well-being. I can see how this type of collecting and assessing biometric data can scale outside of healthcare into other areas such as sports and and sports medicine. "Using technology developed by engineering professor Subir Biswas, participants will wear three small, wireless sensors — on their wrist, upper arm and lower leg — that during any physical activity will measure not only the frequency, intensity and time but also now the type of activity, providing valuable information. The data then will be wirelessly transmitted to medical service providers' servers for remote assessment and well-being management." continue reading at physorg.com

Image from physorg.com

Apple patents iPhone Glove concept

Apple has filed a lot of interesting patents in the wearable space lately. One of the patents is aimed toward warming the hands of iPhone users during cold winter days. The patent "details a glove with a thin, electrically conductive, 'anti-sticky' inner layer that is able to function with a capacitive touchscreen. It also suggests the glove could have apertures on the fingertips for opening and closing the more protective outer layer. Of course, the concept is far from new -- just do a quick Google search for "iPhone gloves" to see a wide variety of choices" (Source). Image from Engadget. Read the patent at the US Patent and Trademark Office.