Abstract
The wearable technology market is consistently growing. Many devices are being developed for commercial applications and individual use incorporating sensors that measure vital information such as heart rate, blood oxygen, and temperature. These general market application devices lack optimization for some target markets such as nursing home patients. For this application, optimized hardware and software are required to extract meaningful data to improve outcomes on a wide scale. Patient-maintained devices are not a practical option; thus, the task of charging and setup is placed on Certified Nursing Assistants (CNAs). These wearables are wireless sensors without user displays and controls. Typical sensing devices consist of Inertial Measurement Units (IMUs), temperature sensors, and photoplethysmography (PPG) sensors for heart rate (HR) and SpO2 with wireless communication and a rechargeable battery. The key objectives for specific use in nursing homes are optimal hardware design for measurement and power efficiency and firmware for the measurement scenarios present in the nursing home. An overview of HR, SpO2, IMU, and temperature measurements will be presented with unique considerations for the target population. The battery life of this wrist wearable was estimated to last 79 days.