Samsung’s newly approved patents suggests the South Korean tech giant might be looking to develop a smart shirt that can monitor your lung activity. The sensor-embedded shirt connects to your phone and can diagnose asthma, pneumonia, bronchitis and COPD.
For the athletes, the smart shirt would make it easier to monitor their lungs and breathing.
According to a patent filed with the World Intellectual Property Organization, the smart shirt is described as: “Electronic apparatus and method of controlling the same.” The technology takes your health history into account along with your Body Mass Index, reports Daily Mail.
In order to deliver the correct diagnosis, it takes into account the wearer’s gender, age, weight and height along with their medical history.
The smart shirt connects to the smartphone, enabling the wearer to read the diagnosis, such as ‘respiratory infection’ or ‘pneumonia symptoms’ on the screen.
Based on the result, the device gives advice, which may vary from preventive to emergency measures.
Drawings included with the patent filing show alerts about abnormal breathing, such as when a wheezing sound is detected, and information on potential issues with the airway.
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Another drawing shows how the smartphone app could tell the user to go see a doctor, suggesting the company wants this technology to be medically certified, which would require FDA approval to be sold in the US.
As for the power source for the shirt, the patent mentions a battery pack, but also suggests it could be powered by the wearer themselves, “since it may be rechargeable in accordance with a user’s motion or body temperature.”
The sensors can also be integrated into other forms of clothing. But Samsung hasn’t said when the smart shirt will be on the market to the general public.
It should also be noted that not all patents that are filed and granted become reality as large companies regularly apply for patents on its ideas.
Last year, Samsung introduced a smart suit and a smart skating suit, which the Dutch short trackers could use to train for the 2018 Olympic Winter Games.
Just last month, the company unveiled its smart shoes, which gives athletes real-time feedback on their training performance.
