MBAN
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Health care and aeronautics industries agree that FCC should set aside bandwidth for dedicated remote patient monitoring system
Mobile body area network (MBAN) technology has the potential to be a boon to the healthcare system of the future by enabling remote patient monitoring through disposable wireless devices -- meaning fewer doctor visits for everyone and great news for latrophobes. Until now, MBAN was opposed by the Aerospace & Flight Test Radio Coordinating Council (AFTRCC) because it utilizes the same radio bands that aircraft manufacturers do when they're testing new planes. AFTRCC didn't want all that medical chatter "polluting their spectrum" but decided to get on board with MBAN when the health care industry promised to create a way to stop signals that disrupt aeronautical traffic. MBAN is a part of the FCC's National Broadband Plan and purports to use short-length radio waves (not unlike Bluetooth) in the 2300 and 2400 MHz range to transmit physiological info to treating physicians -- as opposed to other patient monitors that use web-based communications. MBAN would initially be used in hospitals but could later find its way into residential use by employing home entertainment systems (Wii Fit integration, here we come!) to collect and transmit data. With the FCC expected to decide on the final rules for MBAN later this year, the Intel Health Guide may have some company in the at-home patient monitoring business. We can only hope that the next time the aeronautic and health care industries combine forces, it will take the form of jetpack-wearing doctors making house calls.
Sensium wireless digital band-aid begins clinical trials
It hasn't been a year since it was first announced, and now clinical trials have begun for Sensium. Billed as a "digital plaster," the thin patch contains a power source and sensors for monitoring heart rate, temperature, and perspiration -- all of which can then be sent to your doctor via smartphone / PDA. Sure, it might not have the inherent drama of the rack of loud, blinking machines we're used to seeing in ICUs, but on the other hand it is cheap, disposable, and has a battery life of several days. The device is based on the company's AMx semiconductor IP platform for Body Area Networks, so if you work at a hospital or are a supplier for a large medical concern, hit the read link to see if you can get in on the clinical trials. If not, we're sure that Adafruit will figure out how to build one with an Arduino any day now. PR after the break.
