Earpiece uses hospital sensor technology to detect epileptic seizures

EPItect is a new wearable earpiece that uses seizure monitoring tech, which, until now, was only used in hospitals.

We have already seen a watch designed to help detect epileptic seizures, and now researchers at the University of Bonn in Germany are developing a mobile sensor for seizures, with hundreds of thousands of euros in backing from the German government.

The research will see the development of EPItect, an in-ear sensor that can detect an impending seizure and send a warning alert to the patient and their contacts. The EPItect mobile sensor will rely on the process of electroencephalography, a technology often used in hospitals when monitoring for seizures, but this will be the first time it has been miniaturized for use in wearable technology.

The earpiece technology is set to receive EUR 2 million in funding from the German government, with about EUR 635,000 of this going to the University of Bonn. An earpiece has already been developed by partners Cosinuss Gmbh, in Munich, and will now have to be miniaturized and optimized for the research initiative.

With the development of more advanced forms of epilepsy and seizure detections by scientists and medical professionals, how can designers create comfortable wearable products that use these new innovations?