GTX has signed a collaboration agreement (the “Agreement”) with Flint Rehab, LLC, a leading neuro-rehabilitation device company that specializes in next-generation digital health technologies.
Image: GTX signs collaboration agreement with Flint Rehab. Photo: Courtesy of adamr/Pixabay.
By the Agreement, GTX and Flint Rehab will develop a next generation SmartSoleÒ noninvasive GPS wearable tracker for those who wander, which will include location-based GPS technology, biometric activity sensors and machine learning.
“We are very excited that GTX has been selected to collaborate with Flint Rehab in the new development of the next version SmartSoleÒ GPS footwear that will include activity tracking to promote senior wellness,” commented GTX’s CEO, Patrick Bertagna. “By having sensors for tracking and biometrics, and utilizing both the left and right soles, we will be providing a unique and proprietary offering to the marketplace.”
GTX recently filed a patent for embedding sensors into both right and left insoles with the ability to communicate via Bluetooth. This patent filing is significant to this project as it will be the intellectual property backbone of this new product.
The National Institute on Aging at the National Institutes of Health (“NIH”) has made funding available for companies to develop technologies like the next generation SmartSoleÒ as part of their plan to address Alzheimer’s disease in America. Flint Rehab has successfully obtained NIH funding through Small Business Innovation Research (“SBIR”) awards to develop commercially successful medical devices, including their MusicGlove and FitMi rehabilitation tools for individuals with stroke, spinal cord injury, or traumatic brain injury. Together, GTX and Flint Rehab may be eligible to secure additional SBIR funds.
“From the beginning, our mission has been to empower individuals to live healthier lives through innovative technologies,” said Dan Zondervan, Vice President of Flint Rehab. “Through this partnership with GTX, we look forward to developing a wearable device and machine learning platform that can help individuals with Alzheimer’s disease, traumatic brain injury, or cognitive impairment, live a healthier life, remain independent and age in place.”
GTX’s SmartSolesÒ made headlines this month in a recent IoT Journal article that published research findings of Janusz Wojtusiak, PhD, Associate Professor and Director of Health Informatics at Mason’s College of Health and Human Services. Dr. Wojtusiak studied the possibility of using machine learning methods applied to data from GPS trackers to create individualized models that describe patterns of movement. These patterns can be used to predict typical locations of individuals with dementia, and to detect movements that do not follow these patterns and may correspond to wandering. The GPS trackers and data used in the study were GTX’s SmartSolesÒ. The SmartSoles were also mentioned in a Forbes.com article. And Google’s sister company Verily has in recent months developed a smart shoe prototype that can track weight and monitor falls, and is hoping to attract partners to build the shoes and take them to market according to CNBC. These headlines support the value proposition of continued IP and development efforts in the Smart Footwear category, and this collaboration project between GTX Corp and Flint Rehab.
Source: Company Press Release