From hearing aids to the future of wearable devices

On February 6, wearable devices have become more and more integrated into our lives. Recently, a special user presented his unique experience and ideas to the world through the Atlantic Monthly website, bringing us a new idea about wearables. The following is the main content of the article:

I've been using wearables for a long time, long before Google Glass, Apple Watch, and Moto 360, or devices that tell you how many steps to take, how to run, sleep, or eat. My first experience with wearables seems to have been in 1986, when I was 5 years old.

I've worn something since I was a kid - hearing aids. Many people don't need them, and many of today's wearables have some similarities to hearing aids. Soon, microcomputer systems will become part of your body, just as I have for nearly 30 years. Because of my own experience, I can make some predictions about the future of wearables.

Of course, hearing aids are medical devices and face very different legal regulations than consumer electronics, so some features will never appear on consumer products. But putting that aside, medical products and consumer wearables share several common goals. They both aim to enhance various human capabilities, they both need to be worn on the body, and they both need to be seamlessly integrated into our own experience.

In the next few years, I think we will see the following four trends, and wearable devices will evolve from toys to tools.

1. Wearables will create alternative realities

Wearable devices will provide more functionality than additional screens or input devices. Devices equipped with various sensors can intervene between reality and our experience, changing our perception of the world around us.

Take hearing aids for example. Previous devices simply amplified the surrounding sounds, but today's technology can adopt different strategies based on environmental changes. For example, when I walk into a noisy restaurant, the device recognizes the clinking of glasses and distant conversations, and filters them out, only feeding me the nearby voices. This acoustic experience is significantly different from objective reality. The device presents the changed reality in front of me, making it easier for me to understand and apply it.

Microsoft 's recently launched holographic glasses also take similar steps. By superimposing various images on the real world, users can see more intuitive instructions and instructions. Future wearable devices will be between our experience and reality, helping us understand reality more deeply.

2. Algorithm-driven

Alternative realities mean that our understanding of the world around us is increasingly processed and determined by algorithms. Let’s take the hearing aid example again. The algorithm determines whether the sound coming from the refrigerator compressor is coming from a friend’s greeting. If everything is fine, I won’t hear the compressor; if something is wrong, I won’t hear my friend’s greeting.

Medical devices already use more sophisticated algorithms. Hearing aids use algorithms to decide which sounds to amplify and which to mute; pacemakers use algorithms to decide when to send electrical impulses to the heart; and artificial pancreases use algorithms to decide when to release more insulin. In these cases, algorithms do more than reshape our perception of reality—they take on life-threatening responsibilities.

Algorithms can do more. For example, by recognizing facial emotions, you can anticipate the appropriate approach to your boss. Algorithms can also block ads that you find offensive while keeping posters that interest you.

Devices will become more customizable in the future. My hearing aids have 20 independently adjustable audio channels, and my doctor usually prescribes 6 or 7 of them for me. If a product doesn’t offer a way for users to personalize it, they will be abandoned.

3. Faults become difficult to identify

The more we rely on wearables to interact with society, the more important the issue of device failure becomes. And the more seamless the experience becomes, the harder it will be to detect problems.

Some problems are very obvious. For example, if a hearing aid stops working, it’s easy to spot and fix. However, some problems are less obvious. Once, I was sitting next to a loud air conditioner while meeting a friend, and I found it difficult to hear the conversation across the table. I knew my hearing aid would help me reduce ambient noise, but the hearing aid works based on an algorithm, and it was difficult for me to tell whether it was a device malfunction or the air conditioner itself being too loud. Providing devices that are too customized makes it difficult for users to tell what the problem is, which is a major challenge for future product design.

4. Wearables will record everything

If the problem becomes difficult to identify, the device needs to record sufficient data for analysis. As the behavior of the device is highly dependent on environmental context and external feeds, the more relevant data, the more it can help analyze the problem. After an air crash, investigators first need to find the black box, because it is impossible to reconstruct the accident scene. Only by analyzing the various data at the time can the real cause be discovered and the corresponding lessons learned. The challenges faced by wearable devices are similar.

When I told my doctor that my hearing aids weren’t working well in a noisy restaurant, the doctor had to make adjustments based on guesswork and experience, since he couldn’t provide the source of the ambient sound. For the user, this is a process of trial and error, which can obviously be frustrating.

The latest hearing aids now record audio signals in specific environments for later analysis, and consumer devices can take similar steps to improve the user experience over time.

When I first got my hearing aid, the doctor adjusted it with a screwdriver; now, the doctor can adjust it wirelessly on a computer. I am sure that similar changes will happen to consumer wearables. At present, people still regard wearables as toys or luxury goods. However, as the products mature, they will be able to greatly improve and enhance our daily life experience, just as hearing aids changed my life experience in 1986. We cannot ignore the existence of these trends, and wearable devices will inevitably become an inseparable tool in our lives.

As a winner of Toutiao's Qingyun Plan and Baijiahao's Bai+ Plan, the 2019 Baidu Digital Author of the Year, the Baijiahao's Most Popular Author in the Technology Field, the 2019 Sogou Technology and Culture Author, and the 2021 Baijiahao Quarterly Influential Creator, he has won many awards, including the 2013 Sohu Best Industry Media Person, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Beijing Third Place, the 2015 Guangmang Experience Award, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Finals Third Place, and the 2018 Baidu Dynamic Annual Powerful Celebrity.