Consumer electronics and assisted living devices have been increasing in functionality over the years. Most modern gadgets feature digital technology and artificial intelligence that enables them to make smart decisions. Smart devices such as hearing aids improve the quality of life for users and make it easier for caregivers to trace the movements of people needing assisted living. Become a Hearing Aid Provider and earn a commission for selling highly intelligent devices.
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Smart Speakers
Smart speakers have become like personal assistants and pets for the elderly. They help the elderly overcome technological barriers by speaking to them. The audios offer personalized information that can help users make important decisions such as taking medication or turning on heating systems. Some speakers can also make calls to loved ones in cases of emergency.
Smart Televisions
Smart TVs have revolutionized how people watch TV by providing personalized programming. For instance, smart TVs can provide a personalized set of movies and entertainment programs for children and the elderly. This helps keep them engaged, reducing stress among the elderly and distractions for kids.
Smartwatches
Smartwatches have replaced wristbands as a favorite training tool for fitness enthusiasts. They help you set fitness goals and achieve them faster than using traditional tools. Smartwatches use artificial intelligence and QR codes that can record and transfer user information during emergencies.
Some smartwatches are exclusively designed for the elderly and help them with activities of daily living and communication. For instance, some smartwatches can help relatives trace the movement of the elderly and establish safety zones beyond which they give notification.
Most have call functionality that allows users to give their current location and call helpers in an emergency. Smartwatches also act as tele-assistants providing remote checkups of important health indicators such as heart rate. This technology makes it easier for the elderly to manage incidents such as falls without losing autonomy.
The more advanced smartwatches have fall detection sensors that automatically call 911 or send alerts to emergency contacts. Others have tracking capability that helps caregivers find the wearer’s exact location if they wander off and get lost.
Smart Clothing
Smart clothing has emerged as a technology with huge potential to solve problems affecting elderly and disabled persons. This technology can be used to monitor critical health indicators such as breathing, sleep patterns, heart rate, and activity levels. Some smart clothes can also detect falls while others are connected to the home and can adjust heating systems to align with weather conditions.
Digital Drug Dispensers
A substantial number of Americans suffer from chronic conditions such as diabetes and hypertension. These conditions require patients to take drugs at different times of the day. Digital drug dispensers can enhance medication adherence by acting as reminders of when to take drugs.
Smart Sensors
Smart sensors are devices such as bracelets or stickers connected to a network of sensors located at strategic locations in the home. For instance, you can have sensors in the bathroom, kitchen, sitting room, and bedroom. They help assistants detect deviations from pre-established routines of elderly and impaired persons.
Robots
Robots are the most advanced smart devices and have the highest potential for improving the quality of life for the elderly and people with disabilities. Robots can guide impaired persons around the home or residence, detect falls, remind them to take medication, and keep them engaged. Some of them can entertain the users and keep them connected with assistants and relatives. This helps reduce loneliness and anxiety among isolated persons.
Hearing Aids
Modern hearing aids offer digital speech, sound, and noise processing, ensuring that the sound going to the ears is clear, of the right pitch, and free of annoying noises. They restore sound sensitivity that may have been lost, helping improve hearing and communication. Hearing aids enhance the hearing capabilities of users by reducing isolation and helping improve the quality of their social lives.
Most people get customized hearing aids that address the parts of their auditory nerves that have lost sensitivity. The latest designs have fall detection capability, which is invaluable to people needing assisted living because they can issue an alert to an emergency call list during fall events.
Hearing aids improve communication functioning, leading to increased self-confidence, higher self-esteem, a stronger self-image, and improved mental health. Hearing aids also reduce the loss of psychological functioning, delay cognitive decline and can reduce the risk of dementia by up to 40%.
Smart Cameras
Smart cameras have helped enhance security in homes and reduce incidences of burglary. You can have smart cameras installed around your home or property. Unlike traditional CCTV cameras, smart cameras can be controlled through a smartphone. In case there is a security incident, the smart camera sends an alert to the smartphone so that the user can check what is going on without going to the camera’s location. Meanwhile, smart sensors make it easy to detect break-ins by making sound alarms whenever there is a security incident.
Smart Appliances
Most modern home electronics are equipped with the Internet of Things (IoT), which enables them to make smart decisions. For instance, smart appliances can turn off when not in use, reducing energy consumption and power bills. Smart appliances can also reduce fire risk by switching off or raising the alarm when temperatures exceed a certain threshold. Meanwhile, smart lights and thermostats can switch on and off, depending on heat and light levels.
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