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 The "Active Wellness" seat is the world's first health-monitoring
car seat, according to automotive suppliers Faurecia. It uses a
biometric sensing system built into the seat lining that can detect
if the driver has a drop in energy levels or is under stress and
responds with a specific massage pattern, along with air flow
through the seat's ventilation system.
"The Active Wellness seat is Faurecia's vision on the next level of
personalized comfort," said Olaf Biedermann, director of innovation
at Faurecia. "What we basically do is to monitor respiration rate
and heart rate in the seat, and we derive stress and energy level
from that. Then, having this kind of wellness being information, we
now can offer a closed-loop comfort system; so in case you are
stressed you get a relaxation massage, in case you have low energy
levels you get a very energizing massage."
Faurecia's team of designers wanted to help people feel better after
their journey, compared to when they first got into the car. They
realized during the course of its five year development that this
meant focusing on each individual in real-time, rather than a
theoretical 'average' person.
Teaming up with the Spine Research Institute at Ohio State
University in the United States, Faurecia developed tools to measure
comfort in real-time and ways to help alleviate discomfort. They
also worked with engineers at NASA to review and improve techniques
for collecting a person's vital signs with sensors that do not touch
the skin.
The non-contact sensors used inside the Active Wellness seat were
built by American company Hoana Medical, with Faurecia obtaining
exclusive use of this technology for automotive appliances.
"We have a unique technology integrated; it is piezoelectric sensors
integrated in the seat cushion. Very simple and robust, and our way
to measure the information," Biedermann told Reuters at the
Frankfurt Motor Show where the Active Wellness seat was on display.
Combining these contactless sensors with unique algorithms and
signal processing produced a system that Faurecia says works
seamlessly while the vehicle is moving; delivering real-time
monitoring of the driver and offering a bespoke treatment.
"I think the uniqueness in this context is that we use the sensor
information and have developed - together with a partner -
algorithms to analyze heart rate, respiration, stress and energy
information of this information," Beidermann said.
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Seat comfort is an important factor for a driver, and Faurecia say
the sensing technology inside their Active Wellness seat does not
affect comfort or the visual design of the seat. It can also
accommodate noise and vibration from the moving vehicle without
compromising its effectiveness.
In operation, the Active Wellness seat senses the occupant's heart
rhythms and breathing patterns. This data is used to calculate their
mental and physical state, with a message appearing on a screen in
the cabin offering treatment. If the user accepts the
recommendation, they will receive a massage, with a warming or
cooling sensation to either relax or energize the individual.
"Basically it's the stress level that we get from the respiration
and heart rate information and the arousal or energy level. This is
the two information. And we see critical trends of these two
indicators; we decide to offer the person or the user either
something for relaxation or something to energize," he added.
The Active Wellness seat is also designed to work alongside any
wearable fitness device that the user may be wearing. The seating
system can synchronize with this data to understand what the
individual was doing before entering the car, such as exercising,
and provide appropriate therapies.
Faurecia, one of the world's largest automotive equipment suppliers,
says their intelligent car seat could be on the market by 2020.
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