e-AR wins Bluetooth Innovation World Cup

The Pervasive Sensing Team from the Hamlyn Centre wins the Bluetooth Innovation World Cup 2010

 “Use the body as the media and a source of inspiration and energy to provide long-term, continuous sensing and monitoring.” The work on Body Sensor Networks (BSN) by the Hamlyn researchers got another boost by winning the 2010 Bluetooth Innovation World Cup, announced at the ISPO 2011 in Munich in conjunction with the Wearable Technologies (WT) Conference.

The Innovation World Cup was organised by the Bluetooth SIG (Special Interest Group) and supported by Anritsu, Nordic Semiconductor, Suunto, ST Microelectronics, and Texas Instruments. Over 270 innovators took part and an international panel of experts selected three to compete for the Cup at ISPO and WT 2011 to become the Bluetooth Innovator of the Year 2010 and win prizes worth $50,000. Innovative ideas submitted include sports and fitness, healthcare, and home automation.

The Hamlyn team led by Professor Guang-Zhong Yang included Dr Benny Lo and Dr Louis Atallah. In his presentation at the ISPO 2011 and WT Conference, Professor Yang presented the e-AR (ear-worn activity recognition) sensor developed by the team in partnership with Sensixa, a technology spin-off from Imperial College London. It features  a bio-inspired miniaturised sensor with an on-board micro-processor, a three-axis MEMS inertia sensor with ultra-low power wireless transmission. Inspired by the function of the human inner ear, the device fits discreetly behind the ear and captures similar information, i.e., balance and body posture of the wearer.  With advanced on-node signal processing, further information about the gait, posture, skeletal/joint shock-wave transmission and activity of the individual can be deduced.

The device has already been validated in clinical studies including monitoring postoperative recovery after minimally invasive surgery, patients during COPD rehabilitation, monitoring cystic fibrosis patients at home to assess activity/behavioural changes, and gait patterns for patients after knee replacement. The device is also used in elite sport performance assessment as part of the ESPRIT programme.