Shape-Shifters: Stretchable Devices Set to Revolutionize the Tech Landscape

Flexible and stretchable electronics demand and production in the global market?are?possible due to advancements?made?in materials science and manufacturing procedures.?Stretchable electronics hold a?huge?promise within wearable technology fields?too?where?they?can be utilized to create cutting-edge medical wearables like biosensors that keep track of wound healing or vital signs (Dasgupta et al., p1).?MC10 has created a BioStamp system that utilizes soft sensors glued to medical bandages to monitor health-based conditions.

The economic structure of the stretchable devices ecosystem is still evolving, and a report by Astute Analytica projects that the?global stretchable devices market?is expected?to reach a market size of US$ 4,425.09 million by 2032, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of nearly 29.60% during the forecast period from 2024 to 2032.

As a result, demand for flexible/stretchable electronic products?is anticipated?to grow?significantly;?thereby driving?the growth?of such type of industry altogether. The rising acceptance?of?wearable devices is one of?the key?drivers prompting this expansionary trend.?

Fitness bands,?smartwatches, and health monitors need wearable components?that can?move alongside body motion. In particular, Fitbit and Apple utilize elastic fabric substrates with embedded sensors in their wearables. However, beyond the wearables sector lies?great?possibilities for the growth of stretchable electronics in many other sectors?including?the healthcare?industry?where they may find application.

Other opportunities exist via the Internet of Things (IoTs) and the smart devices in the stretchable devices market.?This?indicates that traditional?objects can be turned?into intelligent and interactive environments?via the integration of?stretchable sensors like those worn within clothes or placed on furniture. Also,?smart?clothing is?being developed?with stretchable sensors by companies like Xenoma, which monitor body movements.?

Stretchable devices make great strides in consumer entertainment and electronics sectors. An example of this is flexible displays used in gaming?controllers,?and?VR/AR devices?among?many others. Also, in a bid to?come up with?several consumer electronics like television sets that will have foldable?screens;?LG and Samsung are investing hugely in flexible OLED displays.

The aerospace and automotive industries are not exempt from?the usage of?stretchable electronics in the stretchable devices market. They require these electronic components because they improve efficiency levels,?safety measures, and user experience during functions in planes or vehicles. The emergence of companies like Canatu designing conductive films that are both stretchable and transparent has brought about this recent development, particularly for the aerospace industry.?

Rapid Growth in Medical Devices and Wearables

The key driver of the stretchable devices market is the rapid growth in?medical devices and wearables.?A return to normalcy could?help fuel this surge as well, with the global wearable medical device market projected to expand to US$ 38.7 billion by 2030.?The study found that one out of every five Americans now wears a fitness tracker or a smartwatch, and over three-quarters are comfortable wearing technology that monitors health.?This?leads to strong sales figures, with over 109 million?units of?smartwatches shipped globally in 2021 alone.?

Also, the healthcare industry itself is encountering an upsurge in investment levels.?The investments in digital health start-ups via venture capitalists reached US$ 10.7 billion by 2023?therefore?signifying?great interest.?An aging population also plays a role.?It?is anticipated?that by 2050, there will be over 1.5 billion people?aged above?65 years old?necessitating?the augmented demand for wearable devices for chronic diseases (that affect?over 40% of the US population).?

Even within one country like?America?where fitness trackers had 75 million users only last year alone, it indicates how popular wearables have become for health objectives in the stretchable devices market. With volumes of data generated from such devices being estimated at 2,000 exabytes within four years from now?clearly?shows them as essential tools in healthcare provision?among?other fields?as well.?

In addition to this, some insurers present lower premiums on those who monitor their health through wearables, thereby bolstering uptake of these gadgets among the general public while helping regulatory approvals by the FDA?which?rise each year, and COVID-19 driving quickened remote monitoring build deeper bonds between healthcare delivery systems and wearables. During all those nights when people have changed their sleeping patterns due to stress or just because they have been too lazy; moreover, many adults utilize those mobile applications for tracking sleep (over 10%); moreover, this indicates how diverse the sphere could be if applied to healthcare.

For instance, in November 2023, Royal Philips, a global leader in health technology, established three new fit-for-purpose MR Smart Fit coils at?#RSNA23. RF coils are?an important?part of every MRI scan. The new ultra-lightweight coils deliver exceptional flexibility, a?significant decline in patient setup time, and optimization with Philips’ SmartSpeed AI solution, which permits better image quality resolution and enhanced diagnostic confidence for healthcare providers.

Flexible, thin, and lightweight, the?Smart Fit TorsoCardiac 1.5T?coil is?a great?example of the new coils’ versatile design. With the capacity to bend over 90 degrees in all directions and enhanced coverage, it?is created?to allow trained physicians to acquire cross-sectional images of the internal structure of the head, body, or extremities.?

The coil offers exceptional flexibility and can be covered around?difficult?anatomies, like long bones, and can?be utilized?to image patients suffering from unilateral hip?pain,?or those with a plaster cast.?To enhance radiology productivity, the?Smart Fit 1.5T shoulder?coil?is developed?to decrease setup time by 10%, with the patient prepared while sitting on the table. Finally, the?Smart Fit Knee 3.0T?coil can?be utilized?with a broad range of patients, with fast and easy positioning on the table.

Exploring the Applications of flexible and stretchable devices

These materials have?been extensively utilized?in?the?manufacturing?of?different next-generation electronic devices.?A few are listed below:

1.???? Soft Robotics:?Soft robots made of elastomers have stretchable or flexible sensors that experience deformations, like torsion, bending, or elongation, to generate motion and are utilized as actuators. Therefore, they serve as microorganisms, making them safer inside the human body.

2.???? Wearable Electronic Devices:?From health monitors to fitness trackers, wearable electronics have achieved popularity in recent years.?The usage of these devices includes?sleep monitoring,?step counting, blood pressure monitoring, and pulse recording.?These wearable electronics have stretchable and flexible materials that offer a convenient human-machine interface to monitor physiological properties.

3.???? Medical Implants:?E-skins and medical implants that utilize stretchable or flexible electronic materials?are?widely utilized?in health-monitoring platforms and personalized medicine applications. Carbon-based polymeric materials, conductive polymers, and nanomaterials have?made skin bioelectronic?strong?systems.

4.???? Flexible Displays:?The usage of?stretchable or flexible materials has allowed the manufacture of flexible and rollable displays.?Many?manufacturers of consumer electronics?have combined these materials into e-readers,?mobile phones, and other consumer electronics to allow for?the rolling of screens?without hindering functionality.

The Rising Demand for Stretchable Sensors in Robotics and Electronic Skins

The emerging field of e-skin presents immense opportunities for the stretchable devices market. The e-skin is a rising market?that is?estimated to hit US$ 17.3 billion by 2029. The growth is?being?propelled?by recent advances in e-skin technology?which?have made it more stretchable, sensitive, and durable. In its modern form, some types of e-skin can tell how much a butterfly stretches up and weighs to 60% before snapping.?

Researchers have even been functioning on biocompatible materials and self-healing e-skins that can?be worn?over?long?periods?like?those found in shoes with holes. This hop in technology has several promising applications across different sectors. For instance, the prosthetics market?which?will rise to US$ 2.8 billion by?2032?could profit from e-skin providing sensory feedback in artificial limbs.?

Touch-sensitive epidermis might also be utilized?on anyone among the total number of industrial robots?which?accounts for about 2.7 million worldwide,?therefore?making them nimbler and growing their?capability?to experience touch.?Also,?there is?augmented funding for research projects like the EU ROBOSKIN initiative?brightening?the prospects of utilizing e-skin in robotics.

The link between e-skin and wearable devices is another important?driver of the?global stretchable devices market.?Accordingly, the market size for wearable skin patches alone could?glide up?to US$ 12 billion by 2028.?The e-skin can detect temperature or pressure?among?other crucial signs?creating?room for developed health monitoring systems?therefore?possibly?doing away with conventional diagnostic devices.?

A good?example?of this?would be VR?where?highly refined haptic feedback is required.?This number includes the soft robotics market anticipated to register US$ 6.83 billion in?sales by the year?2029?where e-dermis has stayed a center stage.?It mimics human movement like dancing or walking and interaction with surroundings. The future of elastic technology looks thrilling since progressions?in this area?like?stretchable devices, specifically e-skin, and other?sectors?are merging with robotics, wearables, and others.

Closing Note

Despite these challenges, the future of stretchable devices is bright. Manufacturers and engineers should keep these obstacles in mind, but with the right strategy and more advancements and investment, this technology will become more accessible. Stretchable devices will take the IoT to new heights. It is uncertain when technology will allow that change, but the potential is too vast across too many usage cases to ignore.

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