Time of transplanted electronic devices

Not yet overwhelmed by the explosion of wearable tech devices, the world continues to witness the rapid development of implantable devices. From electronic tattoos, password-to-eye "pills" , all promise to change human life.

First, there must be a variety of implant devices with the ability to support or enhance human natural capacity, such as vision and hearing. Typically Southpaw , the device is like the first 'compass in the body' with directions for the visually impaired. Southpaw was developed and tested by Brian McEvoy, an electronic engineer cum 'bio hacker' (biohacker - from someone who uses technology to regulate body functions). It consists of a tiny compass covered with a layer of silicon and placed inside a titanium shell for implantation under the skin. This ultra-thin device is activated when the user turns north and responds with extremely light vibrating signals in the skin. This navigation tool is judged to be superior to the map function in smartphones, because it is not dependent on the phone signal.

Electronic tattoo

'Electronic eyes' developed by Retina Implant AG (Germany) promises to restore sight to people who are blinded by retinitis pigmentosa. Tests showed that the ' electronic eye' helped 6/9 patients recover their eyesight in daily life. This result opens up hope for 1.5 million people worldwide to be visually impaired due to the above-mentioned cause. Meanwhile, Professor Zeev Zalevsky of Bar-Ilan University (Israel) has developed an advanced contact lens that allows visually impaired people to read electronic braille (Braille).

Magnet headphones

Like McEvoy, inventor Rich Lee also implanted a magnet earpiece test into his body. Accordingly, two magnets are implanted on both sides of the earholes so that he can listen to music. Lee said the wire that he wore around his neck would convert the sound into an electromagnetic field and turn the two magnets into the world's first 'in-ear headphones' . Later test results even surpassed expectations, as these headphones allowed Lee to detect other remote signals such as magnetic fields or WiFi signals. 'It is the sixth sense,' Lee said, adding that he is pursuing a project to develop a nose implant to control body temperature to help increase body capacity and endurance.

In the medical field, the Circadia subcutaneous implant chip developed by Grindhouse Wetware is a good example of the proliferation of sophisticated implant devices. Circadia is used for health monitoring, thanks to the ability to collect and transmit body temperature data to phones or computers via Bluetooth. Reportedly, CEO Tim Cannon implanted the Circadia test into his arm last year. Meanwhile, the 'electronic tattoo' developed by the University of Illinois (USA) is also becoming a popular and commercialized concept. It is an electronic device that is pressed onto a thin piece of silicon that is applied to the skin to monitor the body's biological signs and transmit information to personal devices via WiFi waves.

RFID chips (radio wave identification technology) are said to have the widest potential of applications and hundreds of devices are being delivered to supporters, after the capital contribution campaign to produce equipment via the network into goodness RFID chips are implanted in the first hand by Amal Graafstra, a young entrepreneur in Vancouver (Canada). In this way, Graafstra uses it as a 'common password' to unlock houses, car locks or personal electronic devices. With RFID technology, Motorola has recently developed a 'password tablet' whereby users only need to swallow this pill into their abdomen to unlock multiple devices without remembering multiple passwords.

In general, the potential application of these electronic devices is very large, but in the short term, scientists will have to prove that transplant recipients do not face the risk of graft rejection that can be life threatening. In addition, they also need to eliminate concerns about the possibility that 'biological hackers' will invade the device to sabotage or dominate the patient's body.