Devices that break down barriers were among the winning entries at this past weekend’s third annual Cleveland Medical Hack-a-thon.
George Albercook calls himself “an inventor who tries to make the world a better place.” His team took third place at the hack-a-thon with a device that helps blind people sense objects around them.
The winning team, CrasBand – made up of Case Western Reserve University students -- created a wristband that can transmit real-time data on a patient’s heart health. Biomed major Josef Scheidt says the product can help keep people healthy and improve a patient’s quality of life.
“They don’t really get a lot of free space [or] free time because they’re constantly having to be monitored. But if they could be monitored remotely, that could give them more freedom. That would provide them with a happier lifestyle instead of constantly being surrounded by people.”
Computer Science major Nsisong Udosen says the CrasBand is unique because it looks at more than just blood pressure and heart rate.
“We’re taking all of those vital signs and then we’re working to develop an algorithm that gives an overall heart-health index and shows how all those calculations tie into each other -- and can provide kind of an assessment of: If you started a new medication, how are you responding to that new medication?”
The hack-a-thon is the unofficial kickoff to this week’s Medical Innovation Summit in downtown Cleveland. As part of the top prize, the CrasBand team gets to present there this morning.
Correction: The photo caption originally identified those in the photo in this article from left to right, and the name of the "CrasBand" was listed as "Crossband."
