With the advancement of technology, we continuously see new and exciting developments in the field of wearable technology. We first met smartwatches, then smart rings started gaining popularity. Now, we’re talking about the future of “smart earrings”…
Smart Earring Technology is Coming
Wearable technologies have become quite popular these days. These devices are becoming familiar not just from spy movie scenes but also from real life. Being equipped with wearable technology means making health information a part of your everyday life.
While there is a plethora of wearable technology on the market, instead of getting lost in all this technological hardware, we are in search of products that truly work and make our lives easier. In response to this quest, following smart bracelets and smart rings, the concept of smart earrings is emerging.
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Developed by the University of Washington, the smart earring continuously reads body temperature through the earlobe. Equipped with a single pin, this earring houses a skin temperature sensor, while the sensor in the swinging part monitors ambient temperature.
More Accurate Than a Bracelet
According to the university’s findings published on February 7th, these data could be used to monitor stress, fever, exercise habits, dietary habits, or women’s health trends. Qiuyue Xue, the co-author of the project and a doctoral student in computer science and engineering, notes that monitoring skin temperature via the earlobe is “much more accurate” than from the wrist.
The developers of the thermal smart earring tested the smart wearable device on six participants and found, according to reports, that the earrings were superior to smartwatches in accurately detecting skin temperature. The maximum battery life of the smart earring is 28 days, and it uses low-power Bluetooth transmission to transmit temperature data and preserve battery life.
In the future, smart earrings could potentially be charged with sunlight or kinetic energy during the wearer’s daily activities. If this futuristic style is not suitable for you, earrings can be personalized with resin ornaments or precious stones.
Many Questions Need to Be Answered
As the smart earring is still in a development-focused prototype stage, there are some uncertainties about certain aspects of this wearable device. How do you charge a earring the size of a thimble? Will it be just one smart earring collecting the same temperature data on one ear, or will there be two similar smart earrings collecting data on both ears? Will this earring be a dumb ornament? Or will the right earring read temperature data while the left one serves a different function in the future?
There are different information about the most accurate region for measuring body temperature. Most studies are related to medical devices designed for short-term fever monitoring. Apple Watches Series 8 and later models measure temperature from the wrist, and there is impressive feedback on the accuracy of the watch.
However, developers of the smart earrings claim that wearable devices like smartwatches cannot accurately measure body temperature with minute accuracy due to women’s health reasons. Other studies supporting or refuting these claims are still quite limited.
If true, smart earrings could be a beacon of hope for monitoring critical fertility and women’s health factors such as ovulation. What do you think? You can write in the comments section below.
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