FlexTech Alliance www.flextech.org, a public-private manufacturing consortium is working on next-generation bendable and wearable electronic devices. In recent months, the Department of Defense (DOD) www.defense.gov awarded $75 million in federal funding which is being matched by more than $96 million in cost sharing from non-federal sources.
The funding will be used to establish a Manufacturing Innovation Institute (MII) http://manufacturing.gov/institutes.html to develop Flexible Hybrid Electronics (FHE) which includes stretchable bendable wearable next-generation electronics to be manufactured and sold at large scale and low cost. For consumers, low-cost FHEs could make a big impact particularly in medical care.
The FlexTech Alliance headquartered in San Jose, California will enable the MII to lead a consortium of companies, nonprofits, labs, and universities. The consortium involves companies like Apple, United Technologies, and Qualcomm. End users like the Cleveland Clinic are able to embed flexible bendable electronics into everything from medical devices to many other devices while at the same time working effectively with partners at Stanford, UC Berkeley, Harvard, and MIT.
FHEs will make it possible to develop wearable devices to improve medical health monitoring and personal fitness along with soft robotics to care for the elderly or to assist wounded soldiers. This can include a number of new innovations such as smart bandages to monitor and treat wounds or an arm patch that measures glucose levels and delivers insulin. Right now, consumers can buy a band aid but can’t find or buy a smart band aid that can monitor blood flow and treat burns.
MII will catalyze new device thinning processes, scale up novel hybrid electronic materials, and design new testing and modelling tools to improve the performance and reliability of applications related to medical monitoring, healthcare delivery, and device-to-device communications tools.
These developments can revolutionize electronic wearable information devices to be able to monitor vital signs and physical states. Also, the research could dramatically improve medical technology delivery through biomarkers and device implants to help the elderly and individuals with chronic conditions.