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Can a car let you know of a heart condition?

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With major technology innovation at the heart of its designs, Ford is pushing the boundaries of how driving can become more than a simple transition from A to B.

Given many of us spend a decent portion of our lives on the road, having a system that can alert of us of impending health problems simply by sitting in the car can be invaluable.

 

Advanced technology experts at Ford have developed a heart monitoring seat that can measure cardio activity using advanced electrode technology and could warn the driver against impending health problems.

 

The potential use for the system is pretty impressive - not only could it safeguard other drivers on the road by preventing accidents caused by heart failure, it could even alert the driver to health issues they were perhaps even unaware existed.

 

“Although currently still a research project the heart rate monitor technology developed by Ford and RWTH Aachen University could prove to be a hugely important breakthrough for Ford drivers,” said Dr Achim Lindner, Ford Research Centre medical officer.

 

“As always in medicine, the earlier a condition is detected the easier it is to treat and this technology even has the potential to be instrumental in diagnosing conditions drivers were not aware they suffered.”

 

The technology might only be at the initial testing stage, but it has so far provided a 90-95% compatibility rating with drivers, and a 98% accurate monitoring score - even through ten layer of cotton wool.

 

While some materials are less responsive, such as synthetic fabric and lamb’s wool, and require further fine tuning, the system’s ability to give good signal without skin contact could provide a life-saving role in the cars of tomorrow.