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Elvie’s wearable breast pump promises silent, hands-free pumping
Elvie, a company that previously released a connected kegel trainer, has developed a cordless, wearable breast pump that aims to make life a little easier for nursing mothers. Like the Willow Pump, it fits inside of a standard nursing bra, allowing for hands-free pumping. But unlike the Willow, Elvie's model doesn't require a separate, disposable bag with which to collect pumped milk. Instead, the milk is collected in a reusable, BPA-free bottle that's dishwasher and microwave safe. And importantly, Elvie claims the device is silent.
Hospital makerspace lets nurses build their own tools
Makerspaces are great for bringing your gadget ideas to life, but they're not usually much help to nurses who may want to invent (or improvise) tools needed to take care of their patients. That's where the University of Texas' new, permanent MakerHealth Space might just save the day. Nurses and other workers at the school's John Sealy Hospital now have a dedicated area with 3D printers, laser cutters and other equipment that lets them create or modify devices (say, a pill bottle sensor) without leaving work. The facility sterilizes and reviews every product before it's put into service, so you shouldn't have to worry about a risky tool ruining your hospital stay.
Robo-nurse gives gentle bed baths, keeps its laser eye on you (video)
When they're not too busy building creepy little humanoids or lizard-like sand swimmers, researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology like to concern themselves with helping make healthcare easier. To that end, they've constructed the Cody robot you see above, which has recently been demonstrated successfully wiping away "debris" from a human subject. The goal is simple enough to understand -- aiding the elderly and infirm in keeping up their personal hygiene -- but we'd still struggle to hand over responsibility for granny's care to an autonomous machine equipped with a camera and laser in the place where a head might, or ought to, be. See Cody cleaning up its designer's extremities after the break.
Tanita's body fat measurer doesn't require you to get up
Tanita's been known to mesh gadgetry with health before, but its latest creation really goes beyond the call. This body fat measuring system apparently enables patients to remain firmly glued to the bed / sofa / etc. rather than actually, you know, getting up and moving, when checking out just how out of shape they are. Truth be told, the device was designed to allow "bedridden or physically-handicapped people" to check up on their BMI without having to be uncomfortably repositioned, but it's still a device the lazy could love. Click on to the read link for lots more pictures -- if you can muster the will power, that is.[Via TokyoMango]
