Wearable Personal KinetiGraph

Wearable Personal KinetiGraph

The original device announced a patient's Parkinson's tremor to every stranger in the room. Outerspace rebuilt it into a discreet smartwatch form, coordinating four engineering disciplines through a pandemic-era supply shortage.

Summary

Industry
  • Medical & Scientific
Expertise
  • Industrial Design
  • Mechanical Engineering
  • Electronic engineering
  • Firmware Design
  • Systems Engineering
Awards
Good Design Award

Project Details

Project Details

Challenge

Medical monitoring that didn't look medical

The original Personal KinetiGraph was, in essence, an accelerometer in a box strapped to a patient's wrist to track Parkinson's tremor. It worked, but it announced the wearer's condition to every stranger in the room. Global Kinetics needed the same monitoring power in a form indistinguishable from an everyday smartwatch.

Redesigning through a global supply shortage

We started the redesign at the height of the pandemic, coordinating electronic, firmware, mechanical and industrial design teams remotely through global component shortages. Electronic engineers specified and sourced a custom TFT screen. Firmware engineers tuned refresh rate and power draw within the limits of the available processor. Mechanical engineers shrank the electronics footprint and added haptic feedback while holding waterproofing and impact ratings.

Outcome

The next-generation PKG watch retained full clinical monitoring capability in a form patients could wear without it reading as a medical device.

Technical Insights:

Industrial design (Creativity)

Smartwatch form factor concealing full medical-grade monitoring hardware

Electronic engineering (Capability)

Custom TFT screen specification and sourcing, integrated within existing hardware constraints

Firmware design (Clarity)

Refresh rate and power efficiency optimised within the limits of the available processor

Mechanical engineering (Capability)

Reduced electronics footprint, integrated haptic feedback and sensors, waterproofing and impact tested.

Systems engineering and program management (Collaboration)

Cross-disciplinary coordination sustained through supply shortages and remote working during COVID-19

Project image
When global shortages made the preferred microprocessor unavailable, our team quickly pivoted, restructured the electronics, and optimized firmware to deliver the same functionality within existing hardware constraints.
Product rendering showing the watch designs in white and black
Product photo of the PCB and firmware, separated to show layering
Watch on workbench during testing
Image
Kinetigraph watch render in light green
Kinetigraph watch render in pale blue

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