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For Future Wearable Devices, the Network Could Be You

Posted by samzenpus on from the reboot-yourself dept.

angry tapir writes: Researchers at the University of California, San Diego, have found a way for wearable devices to communicate through a person's body instead of the air around it. Their work could lead to devices that last longer on smaller batteries and don't give away secrets as easily as today's systems do. From the Computerworld story: "A team led by Professor Patrick Mercier of the university's Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering has discovered a way to use the body itself as the medium for data transmission. It uses magnetic fields and shows path loss that's 10 million times lower than what happens with Bluetooth. This could make the magnetic networks much more efficient, so devices don't have to work as hard to communicate and can have smaller batteries -- or get longer useful lives with the same size batteries. The team hasn't actually tested the system's energy use yet. They envision the technology being used for networks of health sensors that monitor many parts of the body."

15 of 23 comments (clear)

  1. Love the old news by Crashmarik · · Score: 3, Interesting

    http://courses.cs.washington.e...

    Personal area networks using you as the cable. 1996 pretty sure this wasn't even the first.

    1. Re:Love the old news by smallfries · · Score: 1

      Thank you kind sir. Think how low this place would slip without your fine efforts.

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    2. Re:Love the old news by Crashmarik · · Score: 1

      I have no need to speculate, for I have observed it's fall.

    3. Re:Love the old news by bscott · · Score: 1

      Yeah, it's not even a new rerun - http://www.theguardian.com/sci...

      But that's the way it is with patents; they're like survey questions, it's all in how they're phrased. Maybe this time someone will actually produce something with the idea?

      --
      Perfectly Normal Industries
  2. Dont tell by invictusvoyd · · Score: 1

    Howard Hughes .

  3. can't wear a watch by megalomaniacs4u · · Score: 2

    What about all of us who can't wear watches because they just go bonkers/wrong?

    1. Re:can't wear a watch by wonkey_monkey · · Score: 1

      You go bonkers/wrong if you wear a watch? Therapy, I'd say.

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      systemd is Roko's Basilisk.
    2. Re:can't wear a watch by dcw3 · · Score: 1

      What about all of us who can't wear watches because they just go bonkers/wrong?

      Maybe you'd care to enlighten all of us who have no clue WTF you're talking about?

      --
      Just another day in Paradise
  4. Re: The harmful effects of wifi. by Buck+Feta · · Score: 1

    Prove it.

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    I am Audience.
  5. They are HERE! by Bruinwar · · Score: 1

    Gargoyles!

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    SLOWER TRAFFIC KEEP RIGHT
  6. In soviet Russia... by Zaatxe · · Score: 1

    ... computers communicate through you!

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    So say we all
    1. Re:In soviet Russia... by Jake+Griffin · · Score: 1

      My thoughts exactly upon reading the headline.

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      SIG FAULT: Post index out of bounds.
  7. Great pickup line by aNonnyMouseCowered · · Score: 1

    Miss, I have valuable information I need to communicate to you directly. (Yes it's been done to death in spy movies.)

  8. New how? by BillX · · Score: 1

    Through-the-body communication chips have been around a while; you can click-n-buy them right on Digikey.
    http://www.microchip.com/pageh...

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    Caveat Emptor is not a business model.
  9. I for one want to welcome our new overlords by capsfan100 · · Score: 1

    Given that AI will continue to advance. Add the convenience of cell phone implants - "You'll never waste another minute searching for your phone." Then ask yourself - How will we stop The Singularity?