Nearly all of the human-body signals traditionally monitored in a clinical environment can now be collected by a wearable product, very often with close to the same level of precision. These traditional signals include:
In a wearable product the power system must be able to regulate voltage from a battery—a voltage source with a declining voltage output. The regulators must be efficient enough to maximize charge usage, and must also supply all of the power rails required by the design. The usable voltage range of a rechargeable Li+ battery ranges from 4.2V to approximately 3.2V. Most wearable products use main power rails that are below the minimum charge of a single-cell Li+ battery, so the main rails are typically sourced by a step-down regulator. Some functions within a wearable product may require a higher voltage level than that provided by a single-cell battery. Thus, the power management function must contain at least one step-up regulator. The number of rails required depends on the device, but for optimum efficiency it is best to minimize the total number of rails.
Power Management ICs for Wearables 
Power usage and processing capabilities are important selection criteria for micro-processing applications. A system partitioning strategy must be used to decide which system functions are best integrated into the microcontroller and which can be handled externally. Since wearable health devices read human body signals, the capabilities of any on-chip analog circuitry must also be taken into account to ensure they can accurately process low-level signals.
Microcontrollers for Wearable Applications
Human body sensors output very low magnitude signals, in the millivolt and microvolt range. Our integrated devices for wearable health applications combine sensors with amplification and conversion circuits within a single die or package. These small, high-accuracy solutions provide higher magnitude analog outputs or serialized digital outputs.
MAX-ECG-MONITORThe MAX-ECG-MONITOR evaluation and development platform, featuring the MAX30003 clinical-grade AFE, analyzes data and accurately tracks heart signals (ECG and heart rate).
MAX-HEALTH-BANDThe MAX-HEALTH-BAND wrist-worn heart-rate and activity monitor provides a simplified means to extract high-accuracy vital signs and raw data from health sensors for wearable designs.
MAX32625MBEDMbed™-enabled evaluation system for the MAX32625 ultra-low-power microcontroller. Arduino connectors and ample prototyping space enable rapid development.
MAX32630FTHRMbed-enabled development platform for the MAX32630 ultra-low-power microcontroller. On-board PMIC, Bluetooth, and peripherals enable rapid development with a small 0.9in x 2.0in board.
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MAX32620FTHRMbed-enabled development platform for the MAX32620 ultra-low-power microcontroller. On-board PMIC, fuel gauge, peripherals, and Pmod™ connectors enable rapid development with a small 0.9in x 2.0in board.
MAX32625/MAX32626The MAX32625/MAX32626 feature an Arm® Cortex®-M4 with FPU CPU that delivers high-efficiency signal processing, ultra-low power consumption and ease of use.
MAX32600
MAX32630-EVKITPower-optimized Arm Cortex-M4F. Optimal peripheral mix provides platform scalability. On-board Bluetooth 4.0 BLE transceiver with chip antenna.
MAX32620-EVKITPower-optimized Arm® Cortex®-M4F. Optimal peripheral mix provides platform scalability. On-board bluetooth® 4.0 BLE transceiver with chip antenna.
Our wearable healthcare solutions provide additional information on designing wearable health products, including examples and block diagrams of typical wearable designs.
Resources
| Type | ID | Title | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tutorial | 4702 |
|
Easily Add Memory, Security, Monitoring, and Control to Medical Sensors and Consumables |
| Tutorial | 4700 |
|
Introduction to Medical Instruments and Growing Trend for Point-of-Care and Near-Patient Testing |
Resources
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