Described as an electronic “tattoo”, the device is a wearable patch of circuits, sensors, and wireless transmitters that sticks to the skin like a temporary tattoo and is able to stretch and flex with the skin. The researchers hope that the final product will continuously measure and monitor uterine contractions, fetal heart rate and oxygen, and maternal heart rate and body temperature. According to Todd Coleman, professor of bioengineering and head of the project, the device is unique because of its ability to continuously check a number of different measurements in an unobtrusive manner. Moreover, the device will work well in developing countries that lack sufficient healthcare access, but have high mobile phone usage, as it will transmit data wirelessly to a cellphone and on to the cloud to be viewed by physicians far away. Be sure to read about some of the other grant winners here. There’s a lot of neat research being done in the areas of vaccines, synthetic biology, and global health.
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via Tumblr UCSD Electronic Wireless Tattoo Receives Grant from the Gates Foundation
