Integrated Technology
The Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) has built a platform that combines mobile and health care technologies, and will test its mobile health care service with 100 students.
KAIST announced on March 12 that it has constructed mobile health care platform Dr. M and will open its showroom on March 13.
Dr. M is a mobile health care system that analyzes vital signs collected from smart sensors attached to the human body. It was developed by the convergence of cutting-edge ICT technologies related to Internet of Things-based wearable devices and sensors, platforms, big data, and cloud computing.
The newly-developed system was constructed by combining 40 healthcare technologies, including those for vital sign sensors, low power communications, the Internet of Things, big data for data analysis, and disease analysis and prediction. This platform discovers meaningful information by analyzing user activity patterns from vital signs collected from sensors. Once any signs of disorders are detected, the related data is immediately sent to medical institutions, and medical services such as telemedicine are provided.
KAIST is moving forward with a plan to test the service by distributing terminals that can be worn on the wrist to 100 students. The service can respond to emergency cases by monitoring users' vital signs in real time.
The university anticipates that once this technology is commercialized, medical institutions will be able to take proper measures to respond to emergency cases by analyzing the disease patterns of emergency patients or those who suffer from chronic diseases. In times of an emergency, the relevant medical institution will detect an emergency case using a wireless system and send an ambulance. The system also prevents or detects diseases in real time using information on vital signs obtained by wearable devices.
The new system is planning to offer health management programs in line with wearers' ages. Those in their 20s who are interested in skin care and fashion will get services that manage their skin and eating habits. People in their 50s suffering from stress will receive a blood pressure measuring service. Early diagnosis and health management services will be provided to chronically ill patients in their 70s to prevent the recurrence of diseases.
“We are planning to work on projects in partnership with hospitals, silver towns, mobile carriers, and mobile health care device makers,” said Yoo Hoi-joon, professor of the Department of Electrical Engineering at KAIST, who led the research team. A silver town refers to something like a nursing home, where elderly people gather together.