Smart skin to know the inside of the body

Is able to measure heart rate, body temperature, blood pressure and perform an electromyography

     A team of Japanese researchers have created an ultra-thin and elastic LED screen that can adhere to the skin and display dynamic graphics in order to monitor the health status of patients, especially the elderly.

The device can help these groups, "who often have difficulties to use and obtain data from existing (intelligent) devices" to access information, and facilitate nurses and people who care for patients in their home to monitor their status .

Takao Someya, a professor at the University of Tokyo, is responsible for leading the development of the screen, a sheet of a millimeter thick made of rubber, which he believes will "improve the quality of life" by allowing, for example, to remember a sick person taking his medication.

      By adhering to the skin, "it's like a part of the body that transmits not only information, but the feelings of the people that contact you," and by receiving the messages in that way, "you can feel that (those whom you appreciate ) are closer to you, "Someya said in an interview collected by EFE.

Although at first this smart skin is designed for patient monitoring, its use of the screen could be extended to other areas such as construction or maintenance, allowing operators to consult manuals during work, or for athletes to control their vital signs during the exercise.

The researchers are working on how to miniaturize the rigid box containing the batteries, memories and handling circuits, and hope to have a prototype ready for commercialization worldwide in the next three years, according to the researcher.

Someya's team is the same one that in 2017 announced the development of an electronic sensor made of water-soluble and breathable nano-meshes that can adhere to the skin to control a person's long-term health.