ActiveProtective airbag belt to protect hips from fractures
Car airbags have helped prevent countless injuries, offering a soft spot for the head, and these days nearly every other part of the body, to crash into. But cars are not the only places where this technology may prove useful, and a new company called ActiveProtective out of Lehigh Valley, Pennsylvania is working on introducing its belt worn airbags for elderly folks prone to falling.
MedGadget Aug 8, 2014
The device is worn much like a regular belt, but on the outside of the clothing, and it includes sensors that monitor the movement of the hips. If the device detects that the person is falling, an airbag pops open before the the person hits the ground, cushioning the fall. The hope is that the ActiveProtective system will prevent all too common hip fractures that often put elderly folks in wheelchairs.
The company is planning to present its technology, currently in prototype stage, at the TEDMED conference happening simultaneously in Washington, D.C. and San Francisco next month.
Flashback ActiveProtect Smart Garments to Defend Elderly from Falls…
Press release ActiveProtective and Boston Device Development Prepare for TEDMED…
Read more medical news in MedGadget
Deploying airbag tech to protect the pedestrian. Engineer and entrepreneur Drew Lakatos has repurposed the notion of car airbags and is developing a wearable technology to protect us during our everyday movements. Youtube Nov 18, 2014. |
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Drew Lakatos TEDMED