Looking at the books: What might the wearables look like in the future

Apple Watch UltraThe, with its digital display of 2000-nit and GPS capabilities is a far cry form its Revolutionary War era self-winding forebears. We might see other marvellous body-mounted technologies in the next 100 years. His new book is available at www.amazon.com The Skeptic’s Guide to the Future,With help from his brothers Bob, Jay, and Steven Novella, Dr. Steven Novella explores the history of wearables, and the technologies that allow them to extrapolate the future for flexible circuitry, wireless connectivity, and thermoelectric power generation.

Excerpted directly from the book The Skeptics’ Guide To the Future: What Yesterday’s Science and Science Fiction Can Tell Us About Tomorrow’s WorldJay Novella and Bob Novella are assisted by Dr. Steven Novella. Copyright © 2022 by SGU Productions, Inc. Reprinted with permission of Grand Central Publishing. All rights reserved. 

Technology that allows wearables

Wearable technology, as the name suggests, is technology that can be worn. It will continue to evolve with technology. As timekeeping technology advanced, so did wristwatches, which led to today’s smartwatches. Wearable technology is aided by certain technological advances. Miniaturization is one such advancement.

Technology that is smaller can be a common trend that helps wearables. It allows for more technologies to be easily and comfortably worn. We all know about the amazing miniaturization occurring in electronics and particularly in computer chip technology. Chips that are only a few centimeters thick are now much more powerful than computers of the past decades.

The high-quality photos on smartphones show that optical technology is already much smaller. Research continues into smaller optics, with metamaterials being used to make telephoto and zoom lenses that are small enough to be produced without bulky glass.

“Nanotechnology” is now a collective buzzword for machines that are built at the microscopic scale (although technically it is much smaller still), and of course, nanotech will have incredible implications for wearables.

We are also at the dawn of flexible electronics, also called “flex circuits” and more collectively “flex tech.” This involves printing circuits onto a flexible plastic substrate, allowing for softer technology that moves as we move. Flexible technology is easier to incorporate into clothing or even woven into fabrics. Highly flexible materials such as carbon nanotubes are now possible thanks to the development of two-dimensional materials. These materials can be used as the basis for electronics and circuits. Organic circuits allow for circuits to not only be printed on flexible material but can also be made out of flexible material.

Circuits can also directly be printed on the skin using conductive inks. Tech Tats already offers a similar tattoo for medical monitoring. They are permanent because the ink is applied to the skin’s upper layers. They can monitor your heart rate and transmit this information wirelessly via a smartphone.

Wearable electronics must be powered. Existing small watch batteries have limited energy. There are numerous technologies available that can extract small amounts from the environment to power wearables. Self-winding watches were perhaps the first example. The first record of them dates back to 1776. Abraham-Louis Perrelet, a Swiss watchmaker, created a pocket watch that could be wound from normal walking. According to some reports, it took around fifteen minutes for the watch to wind completely.

There are many other ways to generate electric energy that go beyond mechanical power. Four types of ambient energy exist in the environment—mechanical, thermal, radiant (e.g., sunlight), and chemical. Piezoelectric technology converts applied mechanical strain to electrical current. You can get the mechanical force from your foot striking the ground or from your body moving, such as your breathing. It can be made from quartz and bone, as well as lead zirconate titanate and barium titanate. Vibrations are the mechanical energy that is captured by electromagnetic and electrostatic devices.

Thermoelectric generators can generate electricity from temperature variations. The waste heat that we continually shed can create significant amounts of electricity, since humans are warm-blooded mammals. Flexible material thermoelectric generators can also be used to combine flex technology and energy harvesting. This technology is currently in prototype. Engineers published a 2021 paper that described the creation of a flexible thermoelectric generator. This flexible thermoelectric generator was made from an aerogel-silicone combination with embedded liquid metal conductors. It can be worn around the wrist and generate enough electricity for a small device.

The photoelectric effect converts ambient radiant energy into electricity. This is the base of solar panels. However, small flexible solar panels can also be integrated into wearable devices.

All of these energy-harvesting technologies can also double as sensing technology—they can sense heat, light, vibration, or mechanical strain and produce a signal in response. Our technology can also include tiny, self-powered sensors.

Wearable Tech: The Future

There is technology that already exists, or is nearing completion, for small, flexible, self powered, and durable electronic devices. This technology can be combined with advanced digital technology and wireless technology. It is possible to convert tools and devices from other industries into wearable models, or to develop new wearable tech. It is also possible to incorporate digital technology into clothes, jewelry, or other wearable items. This will mean that wearable technology will be more than passive items and become active technology integrated into our digital lives.

These are all obvious applications, but it’s hard to predict which people will find useful or just plain annoying. Smartphones are now smartwatches. They can also be used together for more functionality. Google Glass was an early attempt to integrate computer technology into wearable spectacles. We know how it received.

Extrapolating this technology shows that clothes and gear can be made into electronic devices or can be upgraded with new functionality that supports or replaces existing devices.

For example, we may continue to use our smartphone as our hub for portable electronics. It is possible that the smartphone will connect to wireless earbuds, as well to glasses that have wireless monitors, or other sensors that track daily activity or health vitals. Potentially, the phone could communicate with any device on the planet, so it could automatically contact your doctor’s office regarding any concerning changes, or contact emergency services if appropriate.

You can use your portable camera to record and monitor the environment. This is not only for documentation purposes, but also to help people find the services or locations they need.

As our appliances increasingly become part of the “internet of things,” we too will become part of that internet through what we wear, or what’s printed on or implanted beneath our skin. As one integrated technological system, we could, in a very real way, be part of our homes, offices, workplaces, and cars.

We’ve mostly been considering day-to-day life, but there will also be wearable tech for special occupations and situations. Exosuits are wearable tech that can be used in industrial or military settings. Though this tech is fantasy at the moment, it’s reminiscent of Iron Man. There is no portable power source that can match Iron Man’s arc reactor, and there doesn’t appear to be any place to store the massive amounts of propellant necessary to fly as he does.

Already, more realistic industrial exosuits exist and will only improve. Ripley’s loader exosuit is a better example of sci-fi. Aliens. Since decades, exosuits made of powered metal for construction workers are in development. General Electric created the Hardiman in 1965 and 1971. The Hardiman failed, and it was never used. However, development has continued. The majority of applications are medical and help people with paralysis walk. Although industrial applications are limited, they do not include full-body suits. Although such suits may theoretically improve the strength of workers, they can also allow them to carry heavier loads. These suits could include tools that workers would use normally, such as rivet guns or welders.

Powered exosuits could be used in military applications to provide armor, visual aids like night-vision or infrared goggles, as well as weapons and targeting systems. Exosuits such as these could transform one soldier into not only enhanced infantry but also a tank and artillery.

Technology for emergency medical procedures might be developed by military development. To reduce bleeding, a suit might automatically apply pressure to a cut. Pressure pants are available that help to prevent shock and maintain blood pressure. The most ambitious technology could inject drugs to prevent chemical warfare, increase blood pressure, decrease pain or even cause infection. These could be controlled either by onboard AI, or remotely by a battlefield medical professional who is watching the soldiers and performing actions through their suits.

As technology becomes more mature, civilian applications can be made. A person with severe allergies might have epinephrine ready to inject. They could also wear an autoinjector, which will dole out the doses as needed, or can be remotely activated by an emergency responder.

Everything that has been discussed so far is an extrapolation based on existing technology. The more mature applications can be implemented within the next fifty years. What about the distant future? This is where nanotechnology can help. Imagine wearing a nanosuit, which fits like second skin but is made from reconfigurable and programmable material. It can create any ordinary physical object that you need on your command. The suit could be described as every tool ever invented.

You can also alter your style as needed. Change your clothing at will. You could go from casual for the morning to business casual for meetings and formal for dinner parties without changing. Beyond mere fashion, this could be programmable cosplay—do you want to be a pirate, or a werewolf? More practically, such a nanoskin could be well ventilated when it’s warm and then puff out for good insulation when it’s cold. For maximum comfort, the nanoskin could adjust its temperature to suit your skin.

This material acts as armor and can be soft and comfortable. However, it can become extremely hard when it is subject to force. It can stop bleeding, maintain pressure, and even perform chest compressions if you are hurt. Once such a second skin is widely accepted, it can quickly become impossible to live without it.

Because of its portability and efficiency, wearable technology could be the ultimate in small- or portable technology. Many of the technologies that we are discussing may converge on wearable tech. This is a reminder that we can’t just extrapolate from one technology when trying to envision the future. We must also consider how each technology will interact. Our wearables could be made of 2D materials and powered by AI, robotic technology, and a brain machine interface. This interface is used for virtual reality. You can also create custom wearables using additive manufacturing at home with our 3D printer.