On Aug. 4, CSE was represented by at least one startup company selected to showcase their technology at the first Demo Day organized by the White House. The company's name is Wearless Tech Inc., and its first product is the Cocoon Cam, an "intelligent video baby monitor."
Then-CSE graduate student Pavan Kumar (MS '15) co-founded the company and led software development on the Cocoon Cam. Kumar (pictured third from right) is now Wearless Tech's Chief Technology Officer, but he is not the only CSE person involved in the company. Recent graduate John Chou (BS '15) is the company's iOS developer, and CSE research scientist and lecturer Nadir Weibel has played an important as mentor and adviser to the team after it was accepted into the NSF Innovation Corps (I-Corps) program. Weibel continues in his current position as "health research scientist," and his work includes involvement in the effort to bring the Cocoon Cam to neo-natal intensive care units (NICUs). He is also working on an NSF STTR grant teaming UC San Diego and Wearless Tech on a grant that is currently under review.
Cocoon Cam originated at a couple of hackathons, notably MedHack 2014, where their proof-of-concept for the system was voted "most practical solution."
Demo Day is designed to bring innovators from across the country and to give young technology companies an opportunity to reach media attending the event in the East Room of the White House. Unlike a regular pitch session, the Demo Day innovators shared their unique stories during the event, which was broadcast August 4 at whitehouse.gov/live at 3:40 p.m. ET/12:40 PT.
Founded in 2014 and now based in San Francisco, Wearless Tech has developed a unique patent-pending solution that uses computer vision and cloud-based data analytics to continuously monitor a baby’s condition. The intelligent software, coupled with a digital video camera and infrared technology, offers an easy and completely non-invasive method for tracking heart rate, respiration, and skin temperature from a distance. The company sees Cocoon Cam as being the start of a transition from so-called wearables to technologies that can be just as effective from a couple of feet away -- like when the Cocoon Cam is fixed on a baby's crib, but it can still monitor vital signs and activity of the baby in a simple and secure way.
Unlike other baby monitors on the market, Cocoon Cam continuously checks the baby’s condition, but without the need for uncomfortable wired, clip-on sensors. Parents can view video and receive custom notifications via their smartphone -- without compromising safety.
Wearless Tech is currently collaborating with UC San Diego to conduct field patient studies in both clinical and in-home environments. In the future, the company plans to develop intelligent video camera systems that provide continuous, non-contact and non-invasive vital sign monitoring for NICUs and Pediatric Intensive Care Units (PICUs) and Emergency Rooms (ERs). The technology promises to reduce false alarms and alarm fatigue in critical care environments. Other areas under development include post-surgery and eldercare monitoring as well as enhanced screening for security applications.