Recent wearable technology design trend analysis

Since 2016, a variety of wearable devices have been continuously introduced, including smart watches, activity trackers, smart clothing, medical aids used by first responders, and lifesaving devices. We believe that in the short-term, this rapidly developing field will launch more innovative products, and more new development opportunities will emerge, and the overall design trend has already taken shape. In order to further interpret these trend characteristics, this article will introduce readers to some of the featured development platforms that designers have recently developed for the development of wearable technology devices.

Utilizing the ecosystem

In order to create an innovative environment for developers such as hardware and applications, not only is the development platform, but other ecosystems that drive product innovation and differentiated development are becoming increasingly important. The WaRP7 development platform, designed and manufactured by Element14 and NXP and optimized by NXP, is meeting this need.

The WaRP7 offers all the features you need for a wearable designer: a compact design, onboard sensors, and a variety of connectivity features such as NFC, Bluetooth®, Bluetooth Smart and Wi-Fi, low power and open source features. Based on NXP's energy-efficient i.MX 7Solo application processor, the WaRP7's unique heterogeneous multi-core architecture supports low-power modes critical to most wearable designs, while also driving powerful advanced operating systems and rich user interfaces. Processing performance.

The i.MX 7Solo processor also features advanced security features that support hardware-level security for secure e-commerce, digital rights management (DRM), information encryption, secure boot and secure software downloads. The superior flexibility of WaRP7 provides the full benefits of traditional development tools, and its open source design addresses license limitations.

E-community WaRP7 development platform

Fusion technology and design

Should the design of wearable technology equipment be aesthetically pleasing? Market research has clarified this: Most people consider their designs before buying them. With the breakthrough development of fashion wearable technology this year, those cumbersome wearable devices will gradually be eliminated.

MikroElektronica's Hexiwear development platform is one of the best examples of technology and design. Developed in collaboration with NXP® by MikroElektronica, the wireless development platform is stylish, low-powered and equipped with a large number of sensors. Its hardware includes low-power, high-performance KineTIs K6x microcontrollers based on the ARM Cortex-M4 core, KineTIs KW40Z multimode RF integrated chip supporting Bluetooth low energy, 6-axis accelerometer and magnetometer, 3-axis gyroscope, absolute Digital pressure sensor and an NXP single battery charger IC. Hexiwear is open source designed and supported by its own Android and iOS apps, so customers can connect devices directly to the cloud without having to develop any other software.

MikroElektronicaHexiwear Development Kit

Integrate more components

The new generation of wearable devices is no longer limited to wristband smart watches, and the development of smart clothing has become a trend. The development of sensor miniaturization and component integration is gradually driving the development of wearable underwear, shoes, shirts, and even medical devices with complex sensing capabilities.

Maxim Integrated's MAXREFDES73# skin electrical reaction (GSR) reference design exemplifies the trend that wearable devices will integrate more features. The wristband GSR measuring device measures skin impedance and body temperature. It integrates digital-to-analog converters (DACs) and analog-to-digital converter (ADC) signal chain components, low-power microcontrollers, Bluetooth and Android external applications, and firmware components. Its high-precision 16-bit integrated analog front end (AFE) and low-power features provide developers with a highly integrated reference design for rapid development.

Maxim Integrated Maxrefdes73#: Wearable Skin Reactance (GSR) System

Lower power, larger power

The battery of the wearable fitness device can last for two or three days, while the smart watch is shorter. In order to be more deeply integrated into the user's 'always on' lifestyle, wearable devices not only need to achieve lower power consumption, but also require more powerful power. In the future, we will continue to usher in more ultra-low-power processors and sensors, low-power wireless connectivity (Bluetooth low-power) technology to solve power consumption problems; at the same time, we will be able to combine high-energy density batteries, energy Collectors and wireless charging solutions extend the uptime of wearable devices.

For example, ST's STEVAL-ISB038V1 platform provides wireless charging for ultra-small battery-powered devices. It includes transmitter and receiver boards, as well as a graphical user interface (GUI) for monitoring system behavior. The platform is optimized for 1W wireless transmission, using a half-bridge topology at the transmitter end and using smaller 11mm and 20mm diameter coils at the receiving and transmitting ends, respectively. If the design is modified, the larger coil and full bridge circuit can be used at the transmitting end, and the transmission capacity can be increased to 3W.

STMicroelectronics STEVAL-ISB038V1 Wireless Charging Evaluation Kit

Cost factor

In addition to features and design, wearable designers will pay close attention to cost issues in the near future. Consumers still believe that wearables are too expensive. In general, most new technologies are more costly than mature technologies with broad market support. Will the recent wearable market continue this pattern? This question will have an answer before the advent of 2018, let us wait and see!

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