Category: medical

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Lucyd Release Prescription Compatible Smart Glasses

Recently the Singapore based Lucyd Pte Ltd released their first product, Lucyd Loud, the world’s first prescription-compatible Bluetooth smart glasses. Loud uses bone conduction technology to deliver clear, open-ear sound to the wearer, and brings the functions of a Bluetooth headset to a normal sunglass form factor among many other features.

Lucyd Loud

The new Lucyd Loud smart glasses are equipped with a microphone, speaker and a trackpad, allowing users to answer and control phone calls, listen to music, and access voice assistants like Siri on iPhone’s all without needing to ever put their smartphone out of their pocket. A number of popular apps such as Whatsapp and Venmo can be accessed via Siri with Lucyd Loud as well which further enhances the hands-free functionality.

“Our mission at Lucyd is simple: we want to upgrade your eyewear. The glasses we wear today have hardly evolved at all in the past 100 years and we want to change that.” comments Lucyd co-founder and media lead Harrison Gross: “Lucyd Loud is our first product towards delivering on this mission, and over the upcoming months, we’ll continue to roll out new features and products that bring glasses into the 21st century.”

Lucyd Loud

Lucyd Loud is the newest addition to the companies recently launched eShop which features the latest technologies and trends in eyewear. This eShop includes a licensed eye doctor available to answer shoppers’ eye care questions for free, and a virtual try-on app which enables users to leverage in virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) technology to try on glasses before purchasing them.

The company are currently working on a visual AR smartglass product called Lucyd Lens which is expected to launch in 2019. The Lucyd Loud smart glasses are available for $99 (USD) and include free two-day FedEx shipping in the US with low-cost delivery worldwide available as well.

Elsewhere in the prescription eye products, VRFocus recently visited M2S to try out their new VR eye-testing solution which allows a patient to have their eyes tested in full, even gaining a recommendation for a prescription or further tests. You can see the test for yourself as VRFocus’ Editor Kevin Joyce went through the whole process in our latest video.

For all the latest on all things VR and AR, including prescription smart glasses, keep reading VRFocus.

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Aya Healthcare Partners With Health Scholars For New VR And Simulated Learning Resources

The company aiming to transform healthcare staffing and workforce solutions nationally, Aya Healthcare, have announced its partnership with Health Scholars. The partnership will see Aya Healthcare leverage Health Scholars’ screen-based and virtual reality (VR) simulation course content to provide advanced continuing education to their travelers.

Health Scholars

“As the healthcare industry evolves, innovative education is imperative so we can provide the most educated, well-rounded travelers for our clients,” said Alan Braynin, President and CEO of Aya Healthcare. “Health Scholars offers advanced clinical training that will upskill our clinicians and allow them to be productive faster while on assignment.”

The Health Scholars blended learning platform improves the efficiency and effectiveness of clinical education efforts, aiming to deliver interactive content which addresses patient safety and nurse productivity. By using comprehensive quality analysis tools will allow Aya Healthcare to track performance, identify vulnerabilities and suggest customized, targeted training for individual travelers. All of this is beneficial to improving staffing and workforce solutions.

“We are thrilled about this partnership and the progressive approach this offers to educate a disseminated workforce with superior outcomes to traditional online and hands-on learning,” said April Hansen, Vice President of Clinical Services at Aya Healthcare.

Aya Healthcare

The partnership is another way in which Aya Healthcare is working to create the most educated travel clinician workforce in the industry. Having already recently launched the Aya Scholars Program, which recognizes travelers who exhibit leadership qualities, excellence in clinical performance and with the desire to continue to pursue new opportunities and develop themselves further.

“By partnering with Aya, Health Scholars gains access to a wide variety of clinical resources and ‘in the field’ perspectives to better inform our product development cycles and align our solutions to customer needs,” said Cole Sandau, Chief Commercial Officer, Health Scholars. “And Aya’s use of Health Scholars’ screen-based and VR simulation training will deliver the next evolution of learning and development to the Aya team. It’s a meaningful collaboration and we look forward to working with Aya to drive innovation and improve patient care.”

More information about the partnership and their currently available assignments, head over to Aya Healthcare’s website. For more on all things VR in the future, keep reading VRFocus.

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Watch VRFocus’ Editor Get His Eyes Tested In VR

Following our recent post about VRFocus’ recent trip to Korea in which we stopped in at MS2 to see their new virtual reality (VR) eye-testing solution, you can now see the test carried out in full in our latest video. VRFocus’ Editor Kevin Joyce took to the stage to have his eyes’ tested by the new system which could help to identify weakness or problems with a patient’s eyes by means of a few simple tests.

M2S - VR Eye Test

The eye test process starts with a short calibration which requires the patients to focus their eyes on a number of colour dots before the real test can begin. This is an important step as it helps to ensure the result that patients get at the end is a valid one. Once set up, the first test can be carried out and it is to see how off-center the patients eyes are. In order to test this they are required to look at and focus on some yellow dots for around twenty to thirty seconds. For this test Joyce scored a perfect result in this test which is a superb result.

Test number two checks the muscles around the eyes to ensure they are working properly. The yellow dot will once again need to be focused on as it slowly moves around the screen. As the set up is able to see the patients eyes and track their movements in relation to that of the yellow dot, a result can be drawn up on how effective the muscles around the eyes are working. The outcome is a graph that displays the patients movements against the path of the yellow dot which easily displays the data in a way that both doctor and patient can understand easily.

M2S - VR Eye Test

The third test is one to check a patients depth-perception. By using the computer mouse as a point the patient is asked to looked at a number of different blocks displayed in front of them and to select which one is always the closest to them. This is a tricky test, as seen in the below video, but one that is very important. The fourth test known as the Lancaster Test, which requires the patient to align a light with another one that is being displayed by the doctor. Due to wearing a red-green glasses or display, the patient sees each light with a different eye making it a challenging test. The measurement here is to see how well the patient can align each of the lights together.

Next, the patient needs to focus on dots and click the mouse when they see a white dot come into focus. The test is carried out with one eye at a time and from this test a weakness in the eyes can be detected. The test runs for ten minutes per eye normally but in the essence of time, Joyce did three minutes on each eye. From the outcome of the tests it was suggested that there may be some evidences of glaucoma to which it is suggested further testing be carried out.

You can see the full test for yourself below and for all the latest on the system in the future, keep reading VRFocus.

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A VR Eye Test? It’s A Reality, And We’ve Tried It

If, like me, you wear glasses you’ll be more than aware that the process of getting a check-up has changed much for the better over the last ten to fifteen years. No more is your face forced in to what looked more like some kind of torture device. Now there are pre-checks and automated changes to the device you look through.

Vision / Eyesight

Yes, there’s still the question of whether the circles look clearer and whether you see green or red better on any given lens. Yes, you’ll still be disheartened that you can’t read the lowest line of letters initially because your mother didn’t marry a microscope. But there’s much less awkward invasion of your personal space, and grinding of a stranger’s forehead against yours while they flash something into your eye from less than an inch away.

Eye tests of course aren’t just important for getting the right prescription of glasses. They help identify other issues that might be affecting the health of your eyes and the future of your vision.

As part of one their recent trip to Korea to take part in an immersive technology event, VRFocus Video Content Producer Nina Salomons and Editor Kevin Joyce took a trip to visit M2S who describe themselves as a ‘Media Medical Solutions Company’. As part of their work in virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR) and mixed reality (MR) solutions MS2 have created a new tool for opticians to test patient eyes that utilises a VR head-mounted display (HMD) with eye-tracking and a station fitted with a touch screen. M2S has already created five approved tests with the device which it hopes will speed up the process of diagnosing, treating and preventing eye diseases. It’s an idea that’s been around for some time, but is coming to fruition years later.

M2S - Banner“For the medical field [eye tests] are very constant.” Says M2S’s CEO Won Jung in conversation with Nina. “They haven’t changed it testing wise and cure wise for the eye test – they’ve done the same way for fifty years. They didn’t change at all. But with our VR technology and creating the space technology we can do a much better, and quicker and easier way to do the examination.”

Jung also notes the increase in the amount of eye tests being needed in the modern world, and how faster methods are needed to keep up with demand. You can find out all the system in our interview below, and come back tomorrow when you can see what happened when we put out Editor Kevin Joyce through an unscheduled eye test.

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New AR System Could Help Prepare Doctors For Warzone Situations

A new augmented reality (AR) system has been designed to help prepare doctors and other medical professionals gain experience needed to handle situations they are not familiar with. When casualties occur far away from hospitals, doctors on the ground often have to deal with situations that are not common and in some cases, require in depth knowledge in order to resolve effective. Now, thanks to the power of immersive technology, providing that training will become easier and more cost effective.

Purdue system

As reported by The Engineer, currently a system called Telestrator is leveraged which enables a mentor or member of staff in a hospital to draw onto a video screen and direct the field . It is similar in workings to the technology used during sports broadcasts in which presenter draw on the screen to help explain something to the viewers at home during replays. The trouble with this method is that it requires the medic to move their focus between the screen and the patient which can cause miscommunication and not help in treatment.

Now, Juan Wachs and the team at Purdue have proposed replacing the technology with a new AR solution that will leverage the existing system but make it more suitable for use out in the field. The AR system consists of a head-mounted display (HMD) which streams the footage back to the controller and is then able to be drawn on and edited as needed. The system also makes use of computer vision algorithms to track and align the marks and notes made by the mentor with the surgical region in front of the field surgeon. This ensures that no matter where the wear is located in relation to the notes, they will always be able to see them.

Purdue system

“Our technology allows trainees to remain focused on the surgical procedure and reduces the potential for errors during surgery,” Said Edgar Rojas Muñoz, a doctoral student in industrial engineering, who worked on the project.

The technology has already been put through clinical evaluation and in the next few months will be tested at a Navy base in Virginia, in which it will be used within simulated battlefield situations, before then moving onto the next phase of research and evaluation. You can see a video demonstration of the system below and for all the latest on it, keep reading VRFocus.

 

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Laduma Creates VR Training Experience for Cardiac Procedures

Medicine is one area where immersive technology such as virtual reality (VR) and mixed reality (MR) are having a significant impact. The technology is being used in a variety of ways, including distracting patients from pain, or teaching people about complex medical issues. One of the most significant, however, is the use of VR to train doctors, such as the newly developed VR surgical training tool from Laduma.

Laduma is an immersive tech consultancy which has been working with Dr Harish Manyam of the Erlanger Heart Lung Institute to create a custom 360-degree VR experience of a S-ICD procedure, a procedure which is performed on patients at risk of Sudden Cardiac Arrest.

Ben Smith, CEO of Laduma, said: “Working with Erlanger Health System has shown us all how important it is for medical staff to be properly trained when it comes to performing complex life-saving operations. By filming Dr. Manyam as he carried out the operation with several cameras, our crew was able to capture previously unseen details. The finished 360° Virtual Reality experience is a breakthrough for medical training.”

The VR experience will be delivered to doctors around the world as part of ongoing training in new procedures. The VR experience allows doctors to get a full 360-degree view of the process as if they were standing alongside Dr Manyam in the operating theatre.

“It means doctors in remote parts of the world can be trained better than ever before and save even more lives,” Continued Ben Smith, “Boston Scientific is one of the world’s premier medical device companies and Erlanger Health Systems is known as a leader in healthcare so we were honoured to work with them.”

“As the region’s only academic center, training clinical teams in innovative therapies is a core value of the Heart & Lung Institute team. As the Electrophysiology program leader, having the opportunity to share what we are doing in Chattanooga, TN is exciting”, says Dr. Harish Manyam.

For future coverage on Vr in health, keep checking back with VRFocus.

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Virtual Reality Surgical System Comes to Children’s National Hospital

In healthcare, immersive technology has a number of benefits. Many of these have been demonstrated in a number of ways, whether that is through distracting from pain, or helping to train new doctors. One of the most promising is how virtual reality (VR) can assist in surgery. This technology is being introduced to the Children’s National Health System in Washington D.C.

Children’s National is a paediatric health system based in Washington D.C. which has helped treat children since 1870. The hospital has acquired to new VR technology thanks to a gift from Sidney and Phyllis Bresler, in honour of their children and grandchildren.

The new VR system allows for the integration of patient-specific surgical planning and navigation with professional education and VR-powered patient engagement. The hospital believe that this advanced technology will improve outcomes for children being treated at the hospital.

“Virtual reality modeling is the logical step beyond 3D printing, enabling us to further explore, analyze and find the best approach for each unique surgical procedure,” said Children’s National President and CEO Kurt Newman, M.D. “This generous gift from Sidney & Phyllis Bresler should translate into better outcomes for many of the more than 17,500 patients who receive surgery at our hospital each year, and will benefit generations to come. We are deeply grateful for the Breslers’ commitment to pediatric innovation.”

“Phyllis and I understand and appreciate the important role Children’s National Medical Center plays in serving the needs of all children,” said Sidney Bresler. “It is critical that the doctors and staff responsible for the well-being of these children have access to the latest technology to ensure the highest quality of care. This is our way of thanking the extraordinary staff of Children’s National.”

As VR technology develops and becomes more widespread, it is quite likely that more hospitals will begin using the technology to improve patients outcomes and assist in patient education. For the latest coverage on healthcare in VR, keep checking back with VRFocus.

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UCLA Researchers Are Using VR To Help Understand How Animals Perceive Space

Researchers at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) have been leveraging virtual reality (VR) technology to help them better understand how animals perceive space. Neurophysicist Mayank Mehta at UCLA has devoted his career to studying the brain, especially the cells in the region called the hippocampus, to better understand how the brain creates our perception of space and time. To help with this the use of immersive technology is allowing researchers to build better understands and data samples.

UCLA

Human brains are able to process data at a faster rater than that of any super computer, rapidly constructing mental maps based on sensory inputs. This spatial memory is one of the first functions to deteriorate due to several neurological conditions including epilepsy and Alzhelmer’s disease. If scientists better understand how the hippocampus perceives space and time, they could have better diagnoses and treatment.

The use of animals to help with research is due to the fact that, as Mehta notes, all animals including humans: ““agree 100 percent on concepts of abstract space and time.” As animals calculate where they are in space in the same way else they bump into each other or objects around them, they make for ideal test subjects.

UCLA

By using VR technology to carry out tests and provide controlled environments to see how the hippocampus works and process new data, allow for massive amounts of data to be studied. One of the tests include putting rats in a virtual maze and see how they handle the processing of the route to be able to escape and earn a reward. Rats have also been used for the testing as they use sight, sound and odor to navigate, which helps with their memory.

“VR breaks the laws of physics,” Mehta said. “It removes the consistent relationship between different stimuli in the world that all the animals have used for millions of years. This results in abnormal activity patterns in the brain.”

The work that Mehta and his team are carrying out could lead to some major improvements in both detection and treatment of epilepsy and Alzhelmer’s disease. VRFocus will be sure to bring you all the latest in the future so stay tuned for more.

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Cardinal Partner with Me Fine Foundation on VR Experience for UNC Children’s Hospital

Virtual reality (VR) has been shown to offer a number of use cases in the medical field, from training doctors and nurses to helping patients with their recovery. Recently, technology solution provider Cardinal entered into a partnership with the Me Fine Foundation to bring a unique virtual reality (VR) experience to UNC Children’s Hospital as part of Me Fine’s annual Christmas in July event.

Oculus Touch

The foundation’s holiday event is designed to fill a recreation and activity gap during the summer when volunteers, staff, and students are away.

Created in Cardinal’s Tampa office the VR experience allows both patients and their families to take part, in an adventure to the North Pole where they can catch presents.

Using Oculus Rift headsets, the kids get to meet a time travelling robot who takes them to the North Pole just as Santa’s present cannons go out of control. The videogame then requires the kids to fend off flying presents through four increasingly difficult levels whilst collecting power-ups to help them out.

Cardinal Tampa Holiday

“When Cardinal demoed the VR game to our foundation board we knew right away it would complement our Christmas in July event perfectly,” said Meredith Izlar, Program Director at Me Fine in a statement. “Summer inpatient stays can be a really difficult time of isolation for pediatric patients confined to their rooms, and this partnership will provide a unique respite for these children through technology.”

As an added bonus to the VR experience, Santa will make an appearance spending time with patients and families, while also distributing toys, trucks, stuffed animals, gift cards, and loads of other gifts for pediatric patients.

Me Fine Foundation’s annual Christmas in July event at UNC Children’s Hospital will take place on 26th July, 2018. For any further use cases of VR in hospitals and other institutions, keep reading VRFocus.

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Cardiologist Use VR To Visualise Heart Defects

There are a number of applications for virtual reality (VR) in the medical field. Many of which are tied to training of medical students, or  involving new ways to map and visualise medical conditions, which can often be complex. This application combines both.

At Lucile Packard Children’s hospital, Stanford paediatric cardiologist David Axelrod is able to use a VR simulation to model heart defects in patients. These VR models can be used as learning tools for trainee surgeons, or to show patients and families the ins and outs of the medical condition.

The VR applications currently has over fifteen heart models, which are used for instruction on heart anatomy and congenital heart defects. These models are used in 22 medical centres all over the world, including the University of Michigan.

“We built the hearts as prototypical congenital heart models based on a number of different patients, but each one is like a classical model of whatever heart defect it is depicting,” Axelrod said.

Axelrod hopes that the use of these VR models will expand into new areas and integrate them into the curriculum at Stanford, where the models are already in limited use. Axelrod also said that there are plans to upgrade the application from a model to a full educational experience.

Recently, the team behind the application have implemented a camera application that lets users take, save and export photos that show a heart both before and after surgery. Axelrod is envisioning more educational features could be added to the app over the next few months.

“If you’re able to train medical trainees more effectively on procedures that involve risk without actually having any real risk to a patient, then you’re going to get better outcomes in all areas in healthcare.” said David Sarno, founder of VR firm Lighthaus Inc. Axelrod partnered with Lighthaus to develop the models.

For future coverage of new and innovative uses for VR technology, keep checking back with VRFocus.