Skintile: Electronic Sensing Jewelry

Fashion has always been used as a cultural identifier, a signifier of social status, and a statement of economic means. Now, for the first time since the Mood Ring – and, we suspect, a bit more accurate than that innovation – fashion is letting us wear our emotions on our sleeves… er… skin.

Phillips, in conjunction with The Stella Project, has developed a revolutionary new material that, through integrated electronic sensors, reacts to our physiological cues. It’s worn directly on the skin, is self-contained, comfortable, and even – according to Phillips, but we can’t quite figure this one out – “arousal enhancing.”

Phillips says:

“Skintile the Electronic Sensing Jewelry further explores emotional and physiological sensing. It is a new genre of product; a generation of wireless, stick-on body sensors that re-define traditional body adornment.”

Stella provides a bit more substantive a description:

“Focus: Development of stretchable electronics for large area applications for use in healthcare, wellness and functional clothes, integrated electronics in stretchable parts and products.

“Physically such monitors consist of three technology elements:

• Unobtrusive sensors -small, wireless, virtually invisible, low weight- that measure relevant (body) parameters.
• Algorithms that interpret these measurements.
• Connectivity, preferably wireless to transfer the data to a body network for further processing.”

[via Gizmodo]