Seiko Instruments Inc. (abbreviated:SII, COO:Akio Irie, Head office:8, Nakase, 1-Chome, Mihama-ku, Chiba-shi, Chiba. TEL: +81-43-211-1111) announces its participation in the e-Health Edmonton Project, Development and Integration of Wireless Wearable Physiological Monitors (WWPM). It’s started with the University of Alberta in Canada as center and supported by the Western Economic Diversification, Government of Canada. This project is to develop new physiological sensors and integrate them for the purpose of total health monitoring, health promotion and illness prevention. 12 Companies from Canada, USA and Japan (MI-Laboratories Co. Ltd. and etc.) have participated in this project.
This project is expected to finish in 18 months and in that period a number of business models would be constructed and connections would be made with new emerging businesses.
1. Project Description
The aging phenomenon is a problem not just in Japan, but also in the entire world. At the same time, the number of cases, where the senior citizens are living on their own, is also showing an increasing trend. Hence, in such an age, it is necessary to provide a health care system that can be easily used by the senior citizens. The e-Health Edmonton Project will develop a home care system that can manage the health condition of a user 24 hours a day without interfering his/her daily life, and at the same time construct systematically a business model. Furthermore, the project conducts basic experiments for the development of health care system for not just human beings but domestic animals as well.
2.The purpose of SII participation
With the precise processing technology developed by watch manufacturing, and the wireless technology and the server technology raised-up by various e-businesses, SII has been developing new solutions business that uses wearable equipment. Wearable equipment consists of not just network communication function, but also bio-sensors, and in the future, it would fulfill the function by installation of sensors that can acquire individual authentication and location information. Considering this project as an opportunity, SII would further develop and commercialize the wearable equipment in the health care field, and would lead the market.
3.Partcipating Organizations
University of Alberta (Edmonton, Alberta)
The University of Alberta will take a leadship role in WWPM-Edmonton project. It is in charge of the system development of home server and main server and development of application.
http://www.ualberta.ca/
Seiko Instruments Inc. (Chiba, Japan)
SII’s role in this project will be to develop wireless, wearable physiological monitors which will gather physiological data locally and to transmit wirelessly to other sites without interfering people’s daily activities.
http://www.sii.co.jp/
MI-Laboratories Co., Ltd. (Tokyo, Japan)
MI-Laboratory is a spin-off company of Sony. Development of the terminal that can be installed in beds or toilets and rest rooms. A sensor that can acquire health information (number of pulse beats, breath etc.) unconsciously, low-restrictively and non-invasively to the users is loaded.
http://www.mi-labs.co.jp/
TeleVital Inc. (San Jose, California)
It provides own web based life information/service in the newly developed system.
http://www.televital.com/
Eleven Engineering Inc. (Edmonton, Alberta)
It carries out the wireless conversion of the terminal developed by MI-Laboratories Co., Ltd.
http://www.elevenengineering.com/
Good Samaritan Telecare Program (Edmonton, Alberta)
It supports the demonstration experiment of the home care system.
http://www.gss.org/
TR Labs (Edmonton, Alberta)
It supports the testing and authorization of the wireless communication equipment.
http://www.trlabs.ca/
Alberta Research Council (Edmonton, Alberta)
http://www.arc.ab.ca/
DevStudios Inc. (Edmonton, Alberta)
http://www.devstudios.com/
Cymobile Canada Corporation (Edmonton, Alberta)
http://www.cymobile.ca/
e-Telehealth Technology Research International (Edmonton, Alberta)
http://www.e-ttri.com/
Phasys Limited (Edmonton, Alberta)
http://www.phasys.com/
ViewTrak Technologies Inc. (Edmonton, Alberta)
http://www.viewtrak.com/
[Project]
e-Health Edmonton Project
http://www.wwpm-edmonton.com/
Western Economic Diversification, Government of Canada
http://www.wd.gc.ca/
Contact Information
Seiko Instruments Inc.
Corporate Strategy
Corporate Communications Dept.
Kanou
Fax:+81-43-211-8011