Ihavedesignedanintelligentrobotfortheelderly...
WearableData
Theclassicnightmareofsuddenlyrealizingyou'renakedinpubliccouldsoongetafuturistictwist:itmightinvolvethehorroroflosingnotjustyourmodestybutalsoyourcodes.Scientistsrecentlycreatedmagneticgarmentsthattheysaycanstoredata,automaticallyunlockdoorsorcontrolanearbysmart-phonewithgestures.
Theconceptofinteractive‘smartclothing’hasdrawnattentioninthepastcoupleofyears.Forexample,GoogleandLevi'screatedatouch-sensitivedenimjacketthatcanoperateasmart-phone.Thisandothersmartgarmentaremadewithconductivethreadandusuallyrequireanattachedelectonicdevice.
Toeliminatetheneedforsuchattachedgear,researchersattheUniversityofWashingtonrecentlytookadvantageofwhattheysayispreviouslyuntappedpropertyofconductivethread:itsabilitytobemagnetized.Usingmagneticinsteadofelectricpropertiesofthethread‘mayseemlikeasmalldifference,butit'swhatmakesthisworkinterestingandexciting,’saysChrisHarrison,acomputerscientistatCarnegieMellonUniversity,whowasnotpartoftheresearch.Thenewtechniqueallowedtheresearcherstodosomethingtheysayisuniqueamongwearables:turnthemintostoragedevices.TheWashingtonteammagnetizedapatchoffabricembroideredwithconductivethread,givingdifferentpartsoftheclothanorthorsouthorientationthatcorrespondedtobinary1'sor0's.Thisstepallowedtheresearcherstostoreusto33milliondifferentcombinations—suchaspasscodesfordoors—onashirtcuff.
Thegramentsstillstoreddataafterwashing,dryingandironing,buttheycouldnotescapetime'seraser;afteraboutaweek,thethread'smagneticfieldshadweakenedbyaround30percent.Theresearcherssuggestthatusingcustommadethreaddesignedtoholdstrongermagneticfieldsmightworklonger.Butfornowtheclothesmaybebestsuitedforstoringtemporarycodes,suchasthosefoundonhotelkeycardsorclothingtagsinstores.HarrisonsaysthatitisVeryunlikelyyou'reevergoingtoachieveacomparabledensitytomagneticharddriveswithdata-storingfabric,however.
In2018,17-year-oldHemeshspentalife-changingsummerwithhisgrandmotherAnne,whohadbeendiagnosedwithAlzheimer’sdisease.Witnessingtheimpactofthediseasefirsthand,Hemeshwasawakenedtotheseriousnessofthesituation.
Onenight,Hemeshwalkedintothekitchenonlytodiscoverthathisgrandmotherhadleftthegasstove(炉)onaftermakingtea.ShockedbythedangerousconsequencesAlzheimer’sdiseasecouldbringabout,hecouldn’thelpbutwonderwhatmighthavehappenedifhehadn’tbeenthere.
Hemesh’sworriesincreasedasheobservedhisgrandmother’sbehavior.Shewouldwakeupintheearlyhoursofthemorning,believingshewasonatrain,andwanderoutsideaimlessly.Thiswanderingtendencycouldpotentiallyleadhertogetlostorputherselfinriskysituations.
Determinedtomakeadifference,HemeshengagedhimselfinextensiveresearchaboutAlzheimer’sdiseaseanditssymptomatic(症状的)progression.Throughhisstudies,hediscoveredthatwanderingwasacommonproblemamongdementiapatients,especiallythosewithAlzheimer’sdisease.
Inspiredbyhisnewfoundknowledgeandfueledbyhisdesiretohelp,Hemeshtoldhisfamily,“Ican’tjuststandbyandwatchthishappen.IneedtodosomethingtokeepGrandmasafe.IthinkIhaveanideathatmighthelpnotjusther,butothersinsimilarsituations.”
Withfirmdetermination,hedevelopedaninventiveanswertothewanderingdilemma,adevicehecalledtheGuardianCompanion.Itwasawearabledevice,similartoasmartwatch,specificallydesignedforAlzheimer’spatients.ItintegratedadvancedGPStechnologyandapanicbuttontoassistthosewhotendedtowander,ensuringtheirsafetyandwell-being.Afterthedevicegotitsofficialapproval,Hemeshhappilywenttotryitonforhisgrandmother.
AsAnneputontheGuardianCompanion,Hemeshexplainedhowitworked.
Inthenextfewweeks,thedevicemadeadifferencetoAnneandherfamily.
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