WEARABLE TECHNOLOGY
Wearable device provides precise location tracking for individuals with neurodegenerative conditions, such as Alzheimer’s
The Saluswear GPS employs cellular connectivity to alert caregivers if the wearer experiences a fall or leaves designated ‘safe zones’
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ccording to the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, an estimated 6.2 million people in the United States are living with Alzheimer’s disease, while nearly one million are affected by Parkinson’s. These neurodegenerative conditions become more prevalent with age, impacting nearly 15 per cent of the global population. And as these conditions progress, individuals often require more intensive care. But advancements in technology are creating new opportunities to improve protection and assistance for those affected, while also offering additional help to caregivers. “Many people living with Alzheimer’s, dementia or Parkinson’s may be less familiar with modern technology,” explains Chris Rotberg, CEO of Saluswear Corp, a company that has designed a GPS tracker for those with neurodegenerative disorders. “Therefore, when developing technological solutions, it’s essential to ensure devices can operate independently of the user.”
Saluswear Corp has launched a wearable designed for this exact demographic. At just 25 by 38 mm in size, the Saluswear GPS can be worn on the individual’s waistband, on a lanyard, on an optional shoelace attachment, or simply placed inside a bag. In addition to enabling caregivers to track the wearer’s location, it also detects falls and tracks steps. “The Saluswear GPS device is designed for users who don’t carry a smartphone, as can often be the case with older people living with a neurodegenerative disease,” Rotberg continues. “The cellular connectivity and GPS connectivity provided by Nordic’s nRF9151 SiP negates the need for the wearer to carry a smartphone, and ensures family, friends and caregivers can still pinpoint their location around the clock.”
In emergency situations, reliable transmission is key. This is achieved through cellular connectivity powered by the nRF9151 SiP, featuring an LTE modem with 23 dBm output power, and -108 dBm RX sensitivity in LTE-M. This connectivity enables near real-time transmission of key data to the Cloud, and alerts to nominated contacts’ mobile phones via text message.
18 MAY 2026 | ELECTRONICS FOR ENGINEERS
Reliable locationing via the nRF Cloud
Accurate and fast location tracking is essential to ensure that individuals can be located anytime, anywhere – providing crucial protection for vulnerable individuals. This device’s near real-time tracking is enabled by a combination of the SiP’s LTE-M connectivity, GPS, Wi-Fi and Nordic’s nRF Cloud and Cloud Location Services.
nRF Cloud Location Services can enhance the device’s location-tracking capabilities by dynamically leveraging cellular and Wi-Fi- based positioning.
The Saluswear device also employs Wi-Fi SSID scanning, identifying nearby Wi-Fi networks without requiring a connection. By gathering network details from at least two access points and transmitting this data to nRF Cloud, the system can calculate the device’s position using a Wi-Fi coordinate database. The determined location is then sent from nRF Cloud to the Saluswear web platform, which a caregiver or family member can use to access the individual’s location and step count.
This accuracy is a crucial component of the device’s ‘Safe Zone’ geofencing feature, designated safe area, such as the home, via the Saluswear website. If the wearer exits
this area, the device will send a text to the caregiver and any other designated contacts after a set period of time, alerting them to the movement.
“The Safe Zone feature creates a Wi-Fi-based virtual boundary around the user’s home or other designated locations, alerting caregivers or family members if the individual leaves the area,” Rotberg continues.
Extended battery life
“We designed the device with an extended battery life to increase the chances of locating the wearer,” says Rotberg. “The longer battery life is also helpful in situations where a caregiver might not be around to recharge the device every night.”
To achieve this extended lifetime of at least ten days between charges—using just a 300 mAh lithium cell battery—the device employs built-in system management features. The SiP’s low power consumption further extends the device’s battery life, supporting both PSM and eDRX power saving modes. For as low as 2.7 μA, and with an eDRX interval of 655 s the average current is 6 μA for LTE-M and 9 μA for NB-IoT. This allows the device to sleep for longer periods of time.
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