technology
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WEARABLES
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Futuresource expects fitness to remain
the main driver of wearables, including
heart rate monitoring and the GPS-tracking
of distance and location. Navigation,
multimedia control and pay functionality
will also drive the market forward.
One growth area singled out by Bryant
is head-based devices, which have been
given impetus by virtual reality and
augmented reality. “We haven’t seen smart
glasses similar to Google Glass come back,
but we are seeing application-specific
devices coming from companies like ODG
and Vuzix, typically coming from a B2B
background but trying to push into the
consumer home. The main application for
these AR headsets is drone control. Beyond
that, apps are fairly limited,” he said.
Other than that, there were wearables
designed for specific verticals, such as
trackers for kids, pets and the elderly;
healthcare products, such as blood pressure
monitors; and service-linked examples,
like a complete IoT wearable solution
demonstrated by cruise company Carnival,
which opens doors automatically, features
Pay functionality and has different apps,
demonstrating the possibilities of wearable
technology.
Could wearable technology provide a
solution to the UK productivity gap? New
research suggests that it might, with
corporate users of wearable trackers
shown to be less stressed, more energetic
and more positive than non-wearers.
The 30-day study by Stanford
University’s Mind & Body Lab* and Spire
took place at the offices of LinkedIn
Corporation, using Spire trackers, small,
pebble-sized devices that clip to a belt
buckle or bra strap.
The study analysed a subset of 225
LinkedIn employees from the company’s
product, legal, marketing, engineering and
finance teams. Roughly half (114) were
given a Spire activity tracker, which senses
breathing patterns and alerts the user of
noteworthy changes. An accompanying app
provides training in breath regulation.
Results show that workers who wore
a Spire tracker experienced significantly
less stress and negative moods, as well as
more productive and ‘focused’ work hours,
than non-Spire users, including:
n
A 10% decrease on the Perceived Stress
Scale (p<0.05)
n
A 12% decrease in stress symptoms
on the Mood and Anxiety Symptom
Questionnaire (p=0.001),
n
An 11% decrease in negative affect on
the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule
(p=0.005)
n
2.5 (27%) fewer anxious days
n
3.5 (35%) more energetic days
n
37% more calm
n
25% more focus-related breathing
patterns
n
15% more tension-related breathing
patterns, attributed to the learning curve
associated with any new technology.
You wear it well
New study reveals how wearable technology can reduce
stress and boost performance in the workplace
* Stanford University is an investor in Spire, the development of
which was based on research conducted at the University.
Fig 3: The reduction in perceived stress was significantly greater in the intervention (10%)
than the control (4%) group
(B=0.24,p<0.05)
. (Cohen,Kamarck,Mermelstein,1983)
Fig 4: The reduction in negative affect was significantly greater for the intervention (12%)
than the control (4%) group (B=0.23,p<0.05). (Wardenaar et al.,2010)
Fig 7: The increase in the number of self-reported energized days in the past 30 days
was higher for the intervention (32%) than the control (12%) group
(B=0.29,p<0.05)
.
(CDC,2016)
Feedback from study participants suggests
that Spire trackers might provide a long-term
method of improving health, wellbeing and
productivity in the workplace by enabling
employees to recognise the symptoms of
stress and by giving them the knowledge to
manage and control stress levels.
Three quarters (75%) of participants
say they have acquired new knowledge
and skills as a result of the Spire stress
study program; 58% have implemented
skills learned through Spire and its app;
and 61% say using Spire has taught them
to alter the level of stress they experience.
Commenting on the study, LinkedIn
Global Wellness Manager Michael Susi
said: “Our employees are our greatest
asset – especially their health and
minds. They used Spire to make tangible
improvements to things that can seem
fleeting: focus, distraction and productivity.
Lowering stress while increasing
productivity is crucial to the success of
any business, and to be able to do both of
those with one device is rather powerful.”
The full study can be dopwnloaded
from
Amazon Alexa
devices were much
in evidence at
CES 2017
Carnival Corporation aims to improve the customer experience with a new
wearable (the Ocean Medallion), a digital experience portal (the Ocean
Compass) and an Internet of Things (IoT) network.
