A seizure monitoring watch has been developed by Empatica.
The Embrace Watch connects to both iOS and Android smart devices via Bluetooth technology. Its sensors monitor the nervous system, sleep, stress levels, and activity in an effort to help those with epilepsy.
While worn, data is collected and analyzed in real-time. It also analyzes previous data to help find patterns within habits. In the next coming months, the watch will have a stress feature, which will be able to notify the caregiver on their smartphone when something is wrong, such as when unusually high stress levels occur.
“This device will measure both movement and physiological signals; the combination is likely to be very important for detecting potentially life-threatening seizures,” says Dr. Orrin Devinsky, director of the NYU Comprehensive Epilepsy Center Director, Saint Barnabas Institute of Neurology and Neurosurgery Professor of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry, NYU Langone School of Medicine.
(Credit: Empatica)
The device is designed with:
- An aluminum stainless steel frame
- An electronics board with CPU memory
- A Bluetooth antenna
- 12-sector ring of multicolor LEDs
- An EDA sensor used to measure the sympathetic nervous system arousal and gather information about stress and excitement
- A peripheral temperature sensor
- A gyroscope
- XM7 screws
- A 3-axis accelerometer capturing motion-based activity
- A 3.7 Lithium-ion battery
This is all enclosed between a top cover made from anodized aluminum and Polycarbonate (PC) light pipe and a bottom cover made with Polycarbonate (PC) base, SUS316L electrodes, and vibration monitors used to help sense and notify the user.
User can also alert their caregiver using their smartphone.
Empatica also developed the E4 wristband used to monitor physiological signals in real-time. This device is designed with a Photoplethysmography (PPG) sensor to measure blood volume pulse (BVP) to gather information about heart rate and heart rate variability (HRV). Like the watch, it includes a 3-axis Accelerometer and connects to a smart device using Bluetooth technology.
The device stores data with its internal memory. Its flash memory can hold more than 60 hours of data and can be downloaded on a Windows of Mac device via USB connection.
