We are used to seeing the OLED display especially in smartphones, tablets, or smart watches. However, Samsung has also found a use for it where we would definitely not expect it - plasters. Specifically, it is a prototype of an expandable patch that functions as a fitness bracelet.
The patch is placed on the inside of the wrist, so its movement does not affect the behavior of the display. Samsung used a polymer compound with high elasticity and modified elastomer. According to him, the patch can stretch on the skin by up to 30%, and in tests it is said to have worked stably even after a thousand stretches.
The Korean tech giant claims that this patch is the first of its kind, and that even with current technological advances, researchers at SAIT (Samsung Advanced Institute of Technology) have managed to integrate most of the known sensors into it using existing semiconductor manufacturing processes.
Samsung still has a long way to go before the patch becomes a commercial product. Researchers will now have to focus more on the OLED display, the stretchability of the compound and the accuracy of the sensor measurements. When the technology is refined enough, it will be possible to use it to monitor patients with certain diseases and small children.
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