thermoelectric bracelet by MIT regulates body temperature

MIT develops ‘wristify’ thermoelectric bracelet to regulate body temperature
all images courtesy wristify

a group of students at MIT have developed ‘wristify’, a thermoelectric bracelet capable of changing human body temperature. the device works by monitoring air and skin temperature and sending pulses of hot or cold waves to the wrist to help keep cool. with its ultimate aim to reduce the energy consumption of buildings — by cooling and heating an individual instead of a building, like traditional air-conditioning systems — the concept has the capabilities to alter body temperature at a rate of 0.4 degrees celsius per second.

‘buildings right now use an incredible amount of energy just in space heating and cooling,’ says sam shames, co-inventor of wristify. ‘in fact, all together this makes up 16.5 percent of all U.S. primary energy consumption. we wanted to reduce that number, while maintaining individual thermal comfort. we found the best way to do it was local heating and cooling of parts of the body.’ the team estimates that if the device stops one building from adjusting its temperature by even just 1 degree celsius, it could roughly save 100 kilowatt-hours per month.

‘what we developed is a wearable, wrist-based technology that leverages human sensitivity, can detect and perfect rates of change, and can maintain overall thermal comfort while reducing the need to heat and cool buildings,’ shames adds. the prototype consists of a custom copper-alloy-based heat sink (a component that lowers a device’s temperature by dissipating heat) and can be powered for up to eight hours by a lithium polymer battery.