The World Health Organization predicts that by 2050, the global population of those over 60 will be 2 billion, double from where it stood in 2000. Thanks to improvements in public healthcare, our life expectancy is increasing. Although we will see more people live up to 80 and 90 years old, the number of adults aged 65 and over will outnumber children under the age of 5 in the next few years. This got me thinking about the current experience for the elderly and their caregivers/children. Are there any areas in which we can improve their experience? What tech companies are trying to improve the lives of the elderly? Here are some of my findings.

Internet of Things technology.

Many companies are starting to build sensors that can be placed in and around homes of the elderly and disabled to keep track of their activities and their whereabouts. For example, EmpowerYu is a startup trying to provide peace of mind to the elderly, the caregivers and loved ones by monitoring daily activities using unobtrusive sensors in an elder’s house. As a result, the company will be able to assist the elderly live independently as long as possible. Family members or caregivers will be able to resolve any issues from small ones (i.e. the microwave stopped working) to more serious ones (the elderly may fall down). Another added bonus of using sensors around the house is that we can reduce cognitive load for the elderly (i.e. one may forget to wear a wearable device). Moreover, the smart system will learn the elder’s lifestyle and determine when something unusual happens. Currently a team of Experienced Designers at EchoUser are helping refine this experience.

Wearable devices.

Today, there are wide variety of wearables in the market such as Fitbit and Apple Watch. Wearable devices can provide great benefits to the elderly as well. Wearables will allow tracking of older people’s activities, vital signs and whereabouts even outside of their houses and because wearables are worn, that are harder to lose. They come in many different shapes. Some look like watches, and others look like a fashion accessory. Others are making them discreet by letting users clip them onto clothing items. For example, a company called CarePredict designed a wrist worn device which monitors the wearer’s activities and alerts caregivers/ family members of any changes in behavioral patterns. However, wearables have some cons as well. For example, what if one forgets to wear the device or forgets to charge the battery?

Powered exoskeleton technology.

This robotic technology helps users boost their physical strength. This technology can be used in military and medical fields (e.g., Ekso Bionics), but also to aid the elderly with movement. For example, the Hybrid Assistive Limb developed by Cyberdyne reads the user’s brain signal and takes the desired limb movement.

Summary:

These are a few examples of the current technologies which assist the elderly and their loved ones. There are pros and cons to each technology and each has different use cases where they excel. All in all, it is exciting to see many companies tackling this complex and emotionally important issues for our society. Please share with us any other technologies you may know of that built with the elderly in mind.