Session Organizers: Lars Oddsson, University of Minnesota and Lucy Dunne, University of Minnesota
Our three speakers will tell us about the fascinating development of e-textiles with embedded sensors allowing medical devices to become more wearable and functional, and how wearable medical devices are likely to change healthcare as we know it, it is happening now!
Scalable Remote, Exception-Based Care with Multiparameter Vital Sign Monitoring
Grant Weller
SVP, Data Science, BioIntelliSense, Inc.
Abstract: Recent rapid improvements in wearable device technology, in parallel with advancements in other critical technologies such as artificial intelligence, have put the healthcare system on the brink of a structural and functional transformation, the need for which has been accelerated by experience of the Covid-19 pandemic and critical workforce shortages. In this presentation, I will introduce BioIntelliSense's continuous monitoring and clinical intelligence technology with examples illustrating the clinical value it provides in terms of early detection and operational efficiency. I will frame the technology within the broader context of healthcare system transformation and describe remaining challenges to fully realizing the clinical outcomes and efficiencies that this and similar technologies can deliver.
Bio: Grant Weller is Senior Vice President, Data Science at BioIntelliSense, Inc., a Denver-based continuous health monitoring and clinical intelligence company. Grant is responsible for the development and implementation of cloud-based data-as-a-service (DaaS) algorithms supporting patient monitoring both in-hospital and at home. BioIntelliSense's FDA-cleared technology stack includes the BioButton device, BioCloud DaaS platform, and AlertWatch clinician-facing monitoring services. Grant has a decade of experience in data science leadership roles in the wearables and digital health industry, previously as Vice President of Research with UnitedHealth Group's Optum Labs division, and as a Senior Scientist at Savvysherpa, Inc., a Minneapolis-based healthcare research & development firm. He has published in both methodological and clinical journals and holds several patents in the health monitoring space. He is a graduate of Concordia College in Moorhead, MN with a B.A. in Mathematics and Economics. He received an M.S. and Ph.D. in Statistics from Colorado State University, and was previously Visiting Assistant Professor in the Statistics and Data Science department of Carnegie Mellon University.
Fitting a Population with a Functional Device: Combining Material Properties, Anthropometrics, and Functional Modeling toward an Optimal Sizing System
Eric Beaudette
University of Minnesota, Ph.D. Candidate
Medtronic, Human Factors and User Experience
Abstract: Defining “fit” is imperative for evaluating how well a wearable device can accommodate various types of body shapes, and inform a sizing strategy needed for a target population. A “proper fit” as it is colloquially defined in society for commercial clothing may not extend to wearable device design, where a more contextual “functional fit” is necessary for on-body devices. Developing a sizing system based on functional fit parameters becomes difficult when materials and garment dimensions play a major role in on-body compression. This talk discusses the use of extracted anthropometric data (CAESAR, n=74 scans) with material property testing to model theoretical compression for iteratively developing a sizing system. Following the research example, complexities in sizing for more general types of wearable sizing as well as the importance of defining success in fit and sizing in early R&D will be highlighted.
Bio: Eric Beaudette is a Ph.D. Candidate in Human Factors and Ergonomics (UMN) in the Wearable Technology Lab and works in a Human Factors and User Experience group at Medtronic (Cardiac Rhythm Management). Eric holds degrees in Fiber Science (B.S., M.S., Cornell University), and his dissertation research focuses on understanding on-body textile-based strain sensor characterization in wearables for lower-limb rehabilitation. Eric is generally interested in leveraging both human-centered design strategies and quantitative modeling to design effective wearable systems.
Implications of E-Textiles on Medical Devices
Caitlin Knowles
E-Textile Device Engineer, AFFOA
Abstract: The emergence of e-textiles has the potential to revolutionize the field of medical devices. By integrating electronic components and sensors into wearable garments, e-textiles can provide a new level of comfort, mobility, and accessibility for patients and providers. However, the translation of traditional medical devices into e-textile devices presents a unique set of challenges. In this session, we will explore the implications of e-textiles for medical devices, with a focus on wearables. Several benefits e-textiles offer over traditional devices will be described as well as the challenges of designing and implementing these solutions in soft systems. Through collaborative R&D work enabled by a public-private partnership, AFFOA is resolving manufacturing technology gaps through investment in broad industry infrastructure development. Several AFFOA-member wearable medical devices will be discussed as case studies and success stories of how medical devices can be translated to e-textiles. Ultimately, this session aims to encourage attendees to explore the possibilities of e-textile devices for medical applications, and to work towards overcoming the challenges that currently limit their widespread adoption.
Bio: Caitlin Knowles is an E-Textile Device Engineer at Advanced Functional Fabrics of America (AFFOA), a US Manufacturing Innovation Institute focused on enabling the manufacturability of new textile technologies for the US textile community. She completed her B.Eng. in Materials Engineering at McGill University and her Ph.D. in Fiber & Polymer Science at North Carolina State University.
Session Organizer Bio
Lars Oddsson
CTO RxFunction/Adjunct Professor, UMN
Lars Oddsson, PhD, is a biomedical scientist, an inventor and entrepreneur. He is CTO and Co-Founder of RxFunction, a start-up that has commercialized Walkasins, a wearable sensory prosthesis for balance. Dr. Oddsson teaches in the Medical Device Innovation program at the Technological Leadership Institute at the University of Minnesota and is Adjunct Professor in Rehabilitation Sciences at the Medical School. He is a visiting professor at the Recanati School of Health Professions at Ben-Gurion University in Israel. He is a co-investigator and consultant to NASA’s Johnson Space Center on projects related to the development of sensorimotor countermeasures to long-term spaceflight.
Lucy Dunne
Professor College of Design, University of Minnesota
Lucy E. Dunne, is a professor in the Department of Design, Housing, and Apparel in the College of Design at the U MN. She is also co-director of the Wearable Technology Lab.