Remote systems for health monitoring and doctor consultations leveraging facial recognition developed

A pair of health diagnostic systems powered by facial biometrics have been separately developed by companies in the U.S. and Japan.

The OnMed Station from Florida-based OnMed brings healthcare to patients at large workplaces or public spaces in the form of real-time virtual consultation with a doctor. The experience is kept safe and secure with thermal imaging, ultraviolet sanitization, and facial recognition, the company says.

Increasing the accessibility of healthcare services could reduce the number of visits to the emergency room, seven out of ten of which are unnecessary, according to the announcement. Doctors can prescribe and dispense common medications from a secure, automated vault, which holds hundreds of medications, to save patients a trip to the pharmacy as well.

The OnMed Station provides basic measurements, thermal imaging to take the patient’s temperature and diagnose fever, readings for blood pressure, respiration, and blood oxygen saturation, HD audio and visual for inspection of vitals, as well as the ability to securely transmit results to the patient’s primary physician, or to provide paper prescriptions, referrals, and self-service lab kits for diagnostic testing.

The design of OnMed Station is patented in the U.S. and internationally, and the company intends to deploy units to locations such as colleges, airports, hotels, and large private employers around the world in 2019.

Meanwhile, Japan-based AGC Inc. (formerly known as Asahi Glass Co Ltd.) has developed a mirror with an integrated computer for daily health management, JapanToday reports.

The “Mirrorge” measures heart rate and blood pressure and analyzes facial expressions, communicating with users through an LCD display. The unit includes facial authentication and a module emitting microwaves for noncontact detection, and its thickness and reflectivity make it a practical replacement for common washstand mirrors, the company says.

The Japanese government is promoting “work-style reform” to improve the health of office workers, and by monitoring the condition of employees, the Mirrorge can be deployed to support this goal, according to the report. The display can also be used to show television programming, recipes based on the health condition of the user, or advertising.

While healthcare biometrics have been forecast to make up a $13.9 billion market by 2025, most deployments so far are for patient check-in or processes related to electronic prescriptions.

Article Topics

biometrics  |  facial recognition  |  fever detection  |  healthcare  |  identity verification