MilbotixInspired by the inventor’s great-grandmother, the socks measure heart rate, perspiration, and movementMilbotix
Shlomi Haar, a specialist in the neurobehavioral mechanisms of human movement, is preparing to test smart socks on 15 people in a laboratory at the Dementia Research Institute of Imperial College London (ICL), United Kingdom, where participants will perform daily activities in a mock living room. Developed by Chipping Norton–based startup Milbotix, the socks — aptly named SmartSocks — contain sensors that measure the wearer’s heart rate, perspiration, and movement. If accepted by potential users, they could help with the remote monitoring of dementia patients, who are not always willing to wear the bracelets currently used to monitor the well-being of elderly people with cognitive problems. The socks would be an ideal solution — at least in places where the climate conditions allow them to be worn naturally every day — since they appear ordinary to the wearer. Milbotix CEO Zeke Steer decided to create the SmartSocks after witnessing his own great-grandmother’s battle with dementia. Eager to help, he gave up his job in the defense industry to study a PhD in robotics, during which time he became interested in wearable technologies (Imperial College London Newsletter, August 10).
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