Wearable Tech
BCI INNOVATIONS FOR THE QUANTIFIED SELF TO DRIVE WEARABLE MARKET GROWTH
New hardware solutions are continuing to emerge for wearable brain computer interfaces. In this article, Dr Tess Skyrme, senior technology analyst at IDTechEx will overview some of the technology innovations and companies covered in the report Brain-Computer Interfaces 2025-2045: Technologies, Players, Forecasts, driving this sector forward and perhaps ushering in a new era
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earable technology has long been an enabler of the ‘quantified self’ movement. Fitness trackers and smartwatches now offer users a wealth of continuous
data streams, from step count to heart rate, calories burned, and blood oxygen. As smart-watch popularity has grown, demand has intensified to use these wearables as healthcare tools. Tey can now be integrated within remote patient monitoring schemes and virtual wards or used for decentralised clinical trials. In the consumer market, on the other hand, the rate of new
healthcare features released has slowed. If new features are added, they typically use established motion and optical sensing capabilities with new soſtware. Neuroscience research has long depended on a wearable solution
to neural interfacing. Implanted solutions receive a lot of hype these days, think Neuralink, but specialist non-invasive caps covered in electrodes have been available for decades. Placing sensors in close proximity to the brain to measure neural signals on the move fundamentally requires some form of wearable solution. Until relatively recently, however, there were few brain computer interfacing wearables suitable for the consumer market. A major barrier to adopting technology such as
electroencephalography (EEG) outside of a lab was the dependence on conductive gels. Tese wet products were used to improve the conductance between the scalp and the sensor – essential in gathering high enough quality data to interpret.
Dry electrode and magnetic field sensor solutions for consumer EEG Yet, various dry electrode solutions have been developed in recent
14 | January/February 2025
years to overcome this challenge. Initially, coated plastics or metal became available, followed by more comfortable alternatives using coated rubbers or conductive polymers and patches. Tis includes the ‘Soſt-Pulse’ solution from Datwyler and the ‘Dryode’ material from IDUN Technologies. Electrical activity isn’t the only method of monitoring the brain
of interest for consumer products, magnetic fields are also under research. Magnetic field sensors are, in fact, at the heart of many medical-grade scanners (such as MRI and MEG – magnetic resonance imaging and magnetoencephalography). New quantum sensors can measure the magnetic fields associated with brain activity without super-cooling, meaning they can be placed close to the skin and integrated into wearables. Vapour cell-based optically pumped magnetomers are already
being used by players such as Cerca Magnetics for wearable MEG solutions. Yet diamond platforms are also in development, even smaller and higher resolution applications – which could include consumer brain computer interfacing. It is certainly an application of interest for players such as Bosch’s Quantum Sensing team and UK- based RobQuant.
Better edge compute can help unlock the wider marker for neural interfacing Another crucial component unlocking consumer BCI is data processing and improved edge compute. Te ability to more efficiently deploy solutions for data processing and analysis of noisy, non-invasive data streams is perhaps game-changing. For example, specialists in this space, Neuro Fusion, have developed advanced suites of tools that can be used to monitor not only
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