Originally from Tampa Bay Technology Forum
Date: Friday, June 10, 2011
Every year coolTECH features a broad spectrum of cool technology representing a variety of industries, and this year is no different. This week we'd like to highlight two companies that are having a big impact on the world of medical technology, particularly assistive technologies for the elderly and disabled. One is a company you've definitely heard of and one is an up and comer, but both have extraordinary potential to improve the way people live: Draper Laboratory and Altorr Corporation.
In business for three years, Altorr Corporation's mission is to change the world for the disabled and elderly, especially wounded warriors coming home from Afghanistan and Iraq with leading-edge speech recognition technology. At coolTECH, Altorr will exhibit its Freedom 700 Automatic Door Opener that uses speech recognition to unlock and open the front door of a home. Once the person is in the home (or for coolTECH purposes, the booth) they can use Altorr's speech recognition technology to control their patient lift, operate their television, turn lights and fans on and off and even control their air conditioning, and many other electrical devices with this voice recognition technology that utilizes Bluetooth. This assistive technology provides independence to individuals so they need less reliance on a caregiver.
Draper Laboratory, with origins in the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, primarily focuses on the research and development of advanced, miniaturized sensors and instrumentation technology. Recently it has established a Bioengineering Center in Tampa in 2008, which focuses on biomedical and life science applications of many such technologies which were originally developed for the aerospace/defense industry. At coolTECH, Draper will exhibit its Balance Belt, among other medical technologies.
The Balance Belt, which is currently undergoing clinical trials at Tampa's VA Hospital, contains gyroscopic technology originally developed for space applications. A collaboration with MEEI and BalanceTek, the Balance Belt was developed to address a common malady in elderly individuals whose ability to maintain their balance is reduced due to a variety of medical issues. Balance problems have also been experienced by returning Veterans who may have been subjected to blasts or other traumatic events. The Balance Belt essentially restores an individual's ability to maintain his/her balance, which could potentially prevent falls and other consequences resulting from falls. The economic advantages of using the Balance Belt far outweigh the costs of hospitalization, surgery and rehabilitation to address patient falls.
In regards to participating in coolTECH, Altorr is hoping to not only gain exposure for their assistive technologies, but also to learn about what other companies in the region are working on and maybe find potential partners. Draper also hopes to gain exposure for its technology as well as gain more visibility in the community. Check both of them out at coolTECH on Friday, June 10 at MOSI. We'll preview more exhibitors in the coming weeks.
Read the original article at the Tampa Bay Technology Forum website by clicking here