The Rise of Wearables
Wearables have begun to evolve from novel accessories into highly personalised interfaces that compliment consumers’ digital lives.

The intimate data wearables gather and provide has the potential to respond to the individual needs of the passenger and customise the environment around them in response to their needs and emotions.

With the demands of travel placing high levels of stress and anxiety on passengers, Honour takes a look at a selection of wearables likely to compliment passengers on their journey from A to B.

Stress & Tension

Spire

Spire promises to measure your breathing patterns throughout the day, tapping into one of the most simple yet effective ways of
improving mental and physical health.

The wireless device clips onto your waistband or bra, discreetly monitoring your movement and breathing patterns whilst simultaneously understanding when you’re tense, focused or calm.

As it learns your breathing patterns it reminds you when you’re tense to take a few deep breaths, therefor helping increase your
calmness and productivity through the day.

Pip

The Personal Input Pod (PIP) provides live biofeedback to help passengers monitor and manage their levels of stress through a choice of gamified applications.

A small pebble shaped device sits between your thumb and forefinger, providing live feedback to your device as you unwind and relax. Through understanding your levels of stress throughout the journey, Pip could be the key to helping you mindfully overcome the pain points of your travel.

Audio Curation
Here

Here is in the process of launching a set of wireless earbuds that allow the traveller to personalize how they hear the environment around them.

Paired to a smartphone, the earbuds allow you to control the volume and tone of sounds as they approach your ear. Unpleasant sounds such as in-flight noise and crying babies are said to be a thing of the past.

Hush

Along a similar note, hush allows passengers to block out disturbing noise while also offering the ability to produce noise.

Designed for sleep, the sound of ocean waves or binaural beats offers help to passengers wanting to drift off while cancelling out the background noise of travel. The earplugs then gently wake passengers up at a time set via their application.

Comfort & Entertainment
Move Pilates Shirt

Embedding sensors in material is becoming increasingly possible since Taiwanese manufacturer AiQ showed textiles interwoven with stainless steel mesh could feel indistinguishable from normal cotton or synthetic fibres.

This allows concepts such as Artefact’s Pilates shirt to monitor muscle movement, prompting you to correct your body posture through unobtrusive ‘nudges’ using haptic technology if your movements aren’t optimal.

Cur Pain Relief

Sitting in the same position for hours causes aches and pains for almost everyone, the ability to block this pain is where Cur comes into it’s own.

Cur uses electric pain therapy (TENS) through a wearable the size of a plaster. By sending electrical pulses through your muscles, Cur relieves pain and allows your mind to relax back onto the in-flight entertainment.

Future Thoughts

Could embedding sensors in fabric empower crew to respond to the passengers’ fluctuations throughout travel e.g cup of tea if passengers can’t sleep, or a hot towel after they’ve woken?

Could audio curation products become offered in premium class cabins?

Would incorporating biofeedback sensors into onboard products help passengers manage their stress levels and promote mindfulness?

How could these services link to tangible benefits such as exclusive services, or personalised discounts?