Armbands and bracelets are tailor made for wearable tech. They are small, but not too small, and snugly fit around a human wrist in the perfect location to pick up Bluetooth or Wi-Fi signals. As such, techy armbands grow with the industry. Â Some warn you when you are out in the sun too long. Some send simple text messages to people who are near you. Heck, some just flash lights along to Coldplay songs. Now there’s a new player in the world of armband gadgetry. What’s up his time? Making sure those gross paws of yours are clean so you don’t(or give) sick.
An Israeli company called Hyginex has prepped their wireless hand hygiene monitoring system, which does what it purports to do. This system comprises a cloud-based network of smart wristbands and sensor-equipped faucet, soap, and sanitizer dispensers. It is intended for use in hospitals by doctors and nurse-staff in order to decrease the number of infections caused by dirty hands.  When you are approaching a patient, your mere presence will trigger a nearby sensor. The unit will then beam a wireless signal to the wristband, setting off an LED light and then a light vibration to remind you to wash your hands. It even monitors how well of a job you are doing at said washing. There will be no quick in-and-outs while this device is strapped to your arm.
All of the information collected is then sent to the cloud and aggregated in personalized charts and graphs, so each doctor and hospital can see how compliant they are with general sanitation guidelines. In short, this is a really good idea that could end up saving a few lives. Hyginex is already in place at four Israeli hospitals, with three more in the works. It will be coming to American and European hospitals shortly.
