WHAT IS BIOMETRICS?
The definition of biometrics stems from the ability to capture body measurements or calculations related to human characteristics. Most people these days will know biometrics as the authentication method used for most mobile phones and increasingly, it is also used as a form of identification and security access control.
Recent developments in the use of biometrics have seen it implemented in a number of different ways to create various technology-rich devices or practices that cover two broad uses;
Physiological measurements;
Morphological – fingerprints, hand’s shape, finger, vein pattern, the eye (iris and retina), or the shape of the face.
Biological – DNA, blood, saliva, or urine used by medical teams and police forensics.
Behavioral measurements;
– Signature dynamics speed of movement of pen, accelerations, pressure exerted, inclination)
– The way we use objects e.g gait, the sound of steps, gestures, etc.
– Voice recognition
– Keystroke dynamics
Looking at the history of biometrics most applications were initiated by authorities for military access control, criminal or civil identification under-regulated legal and technical frameworks. As the technology and use cases have evolved over the years, so has public acceptance, with millions of smartphone users unlocking their phones every day with a fingerprint touch or face scan on devices like the Apple iPhone.
You only have to look around the people sitting near you & you will also probably see an Apple Watch, Fitbit Activity Tracker, or other devices that use a mixture of the biometric device together with software to report on various data points, there is even clothing with biometric sensors built-in.
WHAT IS WEARABLE SMART CLOTHING?
The idea of wearable smart clothing starting to surface around 2015, so it is still a relatively new idea. What makes wearable smart clothing so clever is that it combines everyday items that we use together with the latest biometrics technology to track things like heart rate, temperature, breathing etc. Here are some of the clever wearable smart clothing products that have been released;
Australian start up Nadi X Yoga Pants have designed fitness clothing that come with built-in haptic vibrations that gently pulse at the hips, knees and ankles to encourage you to move and/or hold positions. It syncs up via Bluetooth to your phone and, through the companion app, gives you additional feedback.
The Supa Smart Sports Bra will contextualise data derived from devices like digital scale and nutrition apps or biometric data such as heart rate, motion and temperature from SUPA and Movesense sensors in the clothing.
WHAT IS THE POINT OF BUYING WEARABLE SMART CLOTHING?
There are so many questions to consider when it comes to purchasing wearable smart clothing;
What is the purpose of the wearable?
What data fulfills that use?
How much data is too much data?
Buying a piece of smart clothing or a biometrics device is driven by the desire to make life easier & use technology to give us the information at our fingertips using technology that is available in our everyday life. It helps to reduce stress or anxiety with the ability to see vital pieces of information or track information over a period of time.
With the products we just mentioned and our Goldilocks Suit there is a harmonic relationship between material, biometric technology and smart phone application that does all the hard work for you & presents you with simple to understand information that can be used in your daily life.
As shown in the examples above these can be for general fitness, convenience and in the case of the Goldilocks Suit – to help make parenting a newborn baby a little easier and less stressful
SHOULD CHILDREN BE USING WEARABLE SMART CLOTHING PRODUCTS
Selecting which monitoring device or wearable smart clothing product to buy for your child comes down to the outcome or information you want the product to deliver. There are some simple product solutions to solve one off information needs, but they obviously won’t deliver the breadth or depth of information that a smart clothing product using biometrics technology can.
- Is my baby safe & and breathing
- If this is the only question you have then a simple breathing or motion sensor product will suffice.
- Be warned this is a slightly flawed question in the sense that research shows that having a SIDS monitor does not reduce the incidence of SIDS and often causes more stress than it reduces. Source?https://rednose.org.au/article/home-monitoring
- The room is too hot/cold for comfortable sleep for your baby
- This can be answered by using a simple thermostat
- Be warned this is a slightly flawed question as well, as there is not a right/wrong temperature (within reason) as it depends on how you dress you baby, the materials you use and the climate you live in. So a more accurate representation of a good temperature would be tracking skin temperature.
- This can be answered by using a simple thermostat
- Is your baby is feeding well?
- Unfortunately, there is no product on the market (other than the Goldilocks Suit) that can provide this sort of information easily. There are some apps that can be used but they rely on the user putting the information in manually and they will provide generic advice. Another option is to weigh your baby regularly and to track the growth over a long period of time.
- Your baby is behind/ahead on some development goals
- There are numerous checklists that can be used to determine this.
- It is important to note there are always ranges and this type of information is generally taken as a guide rather than a hard date.
- There are numerous checklists that can be used to determine this.
- Your baby slept well/poorly?
- This can be done via smart video monitors, smart activity sensors. This technology generally works like a Fitbit and is a good guide.
- It is important to note this is quite hard in infants, this is due to the fact that some babies move as much when they are asleep as when they are awake, some babies sleep in a rocker and some babies don’t sleep in their bed most of the night. So care should be taken to select an appropriately advanced system that can take into account your specific requirements.
- This can be done via smart video monitors, smart activity sensors. This technology generally works like a Fitbit and is a good guide.
- My baby is too hot/cold to be comfortable
- If this is the only question you have then a simple tympanic or armpit thermometer will suffice
- However if you want to know when your baby first became too hot and when they stopped being hot, a more advanced long term, continuous temperature monitor is required. At this stage Goldilocks is the only product on the market that does this.
Maybe you want all of these data elements & collected in a way that is easy to digest. That is what makes the Goldilocks Suit such a unique smart clothing product as it is the only product available that can answer those questions plus more.
IS THERE A RISK OF GETTING TOO MUCH INFORMATION?
One of the things we focussed on when developing the Goldilocks Suit was to make sure that the information is simple and intuitive to process. We didn’t want to bombard parents with too much information so we used a simple traffic light system together with push notifications to help parents understand what is happening with their child.
This is what makes the Goldilocks Suit one of the best baby monitoring devices for a smartphone as we not only collect more data using our unique biometrics technology but you receive summaries in a way that gives you a holistic view of your baby’s development. It isn’t just about using biometrics to measure simple things like temperature. We parse a wide range of information through our algorithms to help learn about your habits and give you more personalised and relevant information.
Here’s an example;
– The typical amount of wake in the night for 3-6 months is 2-3 times.
– However how many babies wake 2-3 times?
– Some sleep through and some wake 6 times, but 2-3 times is the average.
We personalise your coaching to your baby. If a baby normally sleeps through but suddenly reverts to waking 5 times in the night, we will provide advice and help to the parents. But if another baby normally wakes 5 times in the night, we won’t offer the same help to those parents as that is perceived as normal by those parents. And this is the same for feeding times, sleep patterns and core/room temperature.
HOW DO WE COLLECT THE DATA?
Some of the other benefits of the Goldilocks Suit is to collect the data, the only thing required is the Goldilocks Singlet and a compatible smartphone using iOS or Android. Putting a singlet on your baby and carrying a mobile phone is something parents do anyway so we are not adding anything to the daily routine – this was a priority for us when designing the product.
Goldilocks also collects data 24/7, (so long as it is worn by your baby), whether you are in a café, at a friends house or traveling and if the phone is out of Bluetooth range the data is stored in the Goldilocks Module to be transferred when the phone comes in range again with the ability to store up to 12 hours of data. (However, no alerts can be sent if the phone is out of range)
IN SUMMARY
So biometrics may be seen as intrusive by some people or an invasion of privacy by others, although when we designed the Goldilocks Suit we knew we wanted to take this clever technology and use it in a way that could help other parents.
Our focus has been on developing a wearable smart clothing product that is in a simple to use form factor that everyone is already familiar with, but pack it with clever technology that you can use at the touch of a button using your smartphone.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
WHAT IS BIOMETRICS
Biometrics is any biological signal from a human which is detected by an external sensor. Typically it is used in areas such a security, healthcare and defence
WHAT ARE THE USES OF BIOMETRICS
Biometrics are used in many different sectors such as security for identification and health for diagnostic capabilities.
ARE BIOMETRICS SECURE?
Biometrics essentially turn your unique biological features into a really long string of numbers. It is like having a really long password, which you can’t write down or forget. And that is why biometrics is very popular in the security sector. But like any password, if given enough time eventually it can be cracked. So whilst it is more secure than most options, it is not infallible. Also once it has been cracked it is impossible to change your password, because you can’t change your biological features. But in the health sector it is incredibly useful to give clinicians insights into your wellbeing when you are unable to communicate it. For instance you might know your chest is sore, but an ECG can inform the clinician it is a tachycardia.
WHY PEOPLE MAY NOT LIKE BIOMETRICS
Some people don’t like biometric data because they are worried about privacy. Some data, if it got into the wrong hands potentially could be used against you or your identity could be stolen.
WHAT ARE CLOTHING BIOMETRIC SENSORS
These are biometric sensors which are built into the clothing you wear. They are incredibly comfortable and noninvasive
WHAT IS THE FUTURE OF SMART CLOTHING
We believe that smart clothing is the future of wellbeing. You always wear clothes and if you have sensors built into the clothes this means you always have data about your health. This means that we can catch diseases at the earliest possible moment and so reduce the risk of the complications that may occur. In the future we see all clothing to have some sensor built into it to help detect any changes as in your homeostasis as early as possible.
WHAT COMPANIES PRODUCE SMART CLOTHES
Smart clothing is a very exciting field and most of the big companies are moving into it. Most sports brands such as FitBit, Nike and Adidas are already in the field. Google recently teamed up with Levis to develop Jacquard a smart jacket. And Apple has stated numerous times the biggest impact they think they will have on human life is in health and have numerous patents in the smart clothing sector.
WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF WEARING SMART CLOTHES?
We believe that smart clothing is the future of wellbeing. You always wear clothes and if you have sensors built into the clothes this means you always have data about your health. This means that we can catch diseases at the earliest possible moment and so reduce the risk of the complications that may occur. It also is used in the security sector to create incredibly complex and unique identification, to allow for greater security.
