Airlines serving in Asia may need to become more accommodating of wearable devices

Wearable technology may soon find more support from airlines operating in Asia. A new study from Airbus, an aircraft manufacturer based in Europe, shows that Asian travelers are becoming more interested in wearable devices, such as smartwatches and high-tech jewelry. These devices are very similar to smartphones, but have limited capabilities. For instance, many smartwatches are only able to notify their user about new email and messages as well as providing alerts concerning potential security issues.

Smartwatches and similar devices are becoming more common among consumers

According to the study from Airbus, Asian travelers are beginning to expect a higher degree of luxury and comfort from their airlines. This includes airlines becoming more accommodating of wearable device. Typically, these devices cannot be used while in flight, thereby making them somewhat useless to consumers that have spent significant amounts of money on these devices. As competition between airlines increases, companies are beginning to feel pressure to provide services that are specifically designed for wearable devices in order to better appeal to consumers.

Asian travelers begin to call for more comfort from airlines

The study highlights the growth of the middle class in many Asian countries. As the middle class expands, millions of new consumers are beginning to see air travel in a new light. Many people have begun to put a focus on comfort and are willing to pay more for services that provide the comfort they are looking for. The study suggests that Asian travelers typically spend more time researching airlines and their travel options and many will only choose a company that accommodates their travel needs. The study suggests that airlines not catering to those with wearable devices could be missing out on appealing to consumers that have comfort in mind.

Wearable technology is becoming more popular

Wearable devices are becoming more common throughout the world. These devices are being used by people that are interested in keeping in constant contact with the digital space. In some cases, smartwatches and similar devices offer more convenient features to consumers than typical smartphones, but these devices tend to lack the communication functions of larger devices.

Google Glass helped to enhance the way that a surgeon can perform various procedures.

Two surgeons from the Indiana University Health Methodist Hospital have started using wearable technology in the form of Google’s augmented reality glasses to be able to boost their ability to make appropriate surgical decisions.

These doctors use the wearable tech’s voice control to access the information that they require, when they need it.

The two physicians, Dr. Szotek and Dr. Browne, became the first in the hospital to start using the augmented reality glasses during abdominal surgeries. They now each wear Glass during this procedure, which typically lasts around four hours. With them, they can access medical information – including records specific to the patient – as they remove tumors.

The augmented reality glasses can provide X-ray and MRI data on its floating display.

This information can all be shown by the wearable technology without getting in the way of the surgeon’s line of sight for the actual surgery itself. As it is commanded by the surgeon’s voice, there is no need to take hands away from where they are most needed and without upsetting the operating room’s sterile environment.

That said, this is only believed to be the start of the uses for Google Glass for these surgeons. They believe that these mobile devices will be more broadly helpful in the medical field as a whole. While other surgeons have used the gadgets’ point of view video streaming in order to educate themselves and have provided students with a live insight into every different phase of a surgery, Dr. Szotek sees this tech going further. He hopes to be able to use biological tracers so that his AR glasses will be able to actually differentiate between healthy tissue and the tumor, itself.

He stated that being able to automatically differentiate between these two tissues “could revolutionize the field of cancer surgery”. This would help to make certain that the tissue could be more completely removed while leaving the maximum amount of healthy tissue behind.

It could also be beneficial for emergency first responders to wear augmented reality glasses so that they would be better capable of handling unusual types of accident or medical condition, and to be able to provide them with accurate remote instructions.