Designers can now push the trend of monitoring devices for health-related reasons by quickly creating personalized, wearable solutions with the Health Sensor Platform 2.0 (HSP 2.0) from Maxim Integrated Products, Inc. This rapid prototyping and developmental platform, known as MAXREFDES101#, enables a wrist-worn wearable to monitor electrocardiogram (ECG), heart rate and body temperature, saving up to six months in development time.
“Wearables are metamorphosing from being much more than a fun device for health and fitness. New capabilities are enabling healthcare professionals to use them as virtual care monitoring devices to assess chronic conditions and evaluate overall well-being,” says Roeen Roashan, senior analyst, healthcare technology, IHS Markit. “Innovations such as Maxim’s Health Sensor Platform 2.0 are helping to drive this evolution toward more proactive healthcare.”
As wearables become more prevalent, wrist-based devices seem to be the most convenient to use on a daily-basis. However, developing a wearable to precisely monitor ECG from the wrist has been a challenge. Additionally, getting accurate body temperature frequently requires using a thermometer. With Maxim’s proprietary sensor and technology, HSP 2.0 has been able to address these challenges.
The wrist-based form function allows HSP 2.0 to provide body-monitoring measurements that start immediately. Data is stored on the platform for patient evaluation, and can be streamed to a PC for later analysis. Additionally, the data measurements collected by the HSP 2.0 can be owned by the wearer, mitigating data privacy concerns. The platform also allows users to have control of their own information and conduct their own data analysis. Lastly, because HSP 2.0 is an open platform, designers can evaluate their own algorithms on the board. The modular format is also future proof so it can accommodate new sensors as time progresses.
Key advantages for designers include faster time to market by cutting design and validation time up to six months, high accuracy with ECG and body-temperature detection, and Arm Mbed Support for rapid application prototyping, which eliminates maintenance of software tools and provides a library of open-sourced software.
HSP 2.0 is also integrated in a microcontroller for wearables and IoT applications, a biometric sensor hub with embedded heart-rate algorithm, an optical pulse oximeter and more.
“Patients and medical professionals are increasingly wanting more real-time exchange of accurate health data collected over an extended time frame, along with the ability to access this data from anywhere,” says Andrew Baker, managing director, Industrial and Healthcare Business Unit, Maxim Integrated. “Wearable and medical device manufacturers can turn to Maxim’s HSP 2.0 to create accurate, wrist-worn health monitoring solutions.”