These portable medical devices are designed be a completely incognito health monitoring setup

Lunit is a collection of portable medical devices designed to be inconspicuous for comfortable use in public settings.

Portable medical devices are trusted by those of us with health conditions such as asthma, diabetes, and high blood pressure. Recontextualizing the portable medical device to be more accessible and tactful, designers Dayeon Jang and Sungchae Park created Lunit, a collection of portable medical devices designed for use in public settings.

Lunit is comprised of four medical devices: an inhaler, blood glucose meter, insulin syringe, and a blood pressure oximeter. Jang and Park took on the portable medical device because they noticed a lack of ergonomics and comfort in the antiquated medical devices still on the market today. Each device of Lunit is inspired by the dark side of the moon to be inconspicuous at first glance, laced in smoky black and gray tones and wrapped in translucent coverings reminiscent of evening mist.

Lunit’s inhaler comes in the same familiar shape as traditional inhalers, but a tubelike build with rounded corners and edges gives it a smoother grip and more ergonomic handling shape. The translucent coverings on both ends of the inhaler also work to give it a more obscure look.

Jang and Park reinterpreted the blood glucose meter as a household product that could be taken on the go as easily as the inhaler. The insulin syringe also finds a bit of obscurity through translucent, foggy coverings that conceal the full function of the syringe, giving it a design as discreet as a pen’s. Finally, the blood pressure oximeter is small enough to fit inside your breast or back pocket and comes with all the functions of a traditional oximeter.

Designed to fit inside your pocket, portable medical devices like inhalers and insulin syringes allow users to take care of restricted airways and high blood sugar levels from anywhere, but sometimes the device’s aesthetic design is less user-friendly than their portability. In prioritizing a discreet look for Lunit, the designers hoped to dampen the staring eyes and stigma typically associated with portable medical devices.

Speaking to this, the designers suggest, “When using medical devices outside, users can [become] nervous or uncomfortable because they are worried about what people think about them or their actions. We want to solve [this] through design so that users with underlying diseases can no longer hide and take care of their health with confidence.”

Designers: Sungchae Park and Dayeon Jang

The ribbed, translucent covering of Lunit’s insulin syringe gives it inconspicuous concealment.

When covered, the insulting syringe from Lunit looks like a pen. 

The blood pressure oximeters are adorned with yellow dots similar to a starry night.

Small enough to fit into any pocket, Lunit’s oximeter can be taken anywhere.

The household blood glucose meter looks just like a portable radio.

Equipped with their own carrying case, each device from Lunit is designed to make taking care of yourself look as good as it feels.

This pain-relief gadget will clear up your sinus without any pills!

We are in the midst of a pandemic and even a single cough can send our brains into overthinking but I am just here to remind you that seasonal allergies still exist. Yes, pollen is still coming out during COVID-19 (very insensitive of it) – remember that the next time you sneeze so you can avoid the anxiety. We may not have a vaccine for the virus but we do have a solution for your sinus problems – ClearUp!

When sinus hits, we are willing to do anything to breathe normally again. It doesn’t just cause pain in the nose but also your head, temples, and even teeth! ClearUp (FDA approved) was designed to help alleviate the discomfort and provide a long-term solution instead of taking pills every time the season changes. It emits gently microcurrent waves when you glide the gadget over the affected area to reduce the pain and keep it all clear for up to 6 hours. This is especially beneficial if you deal with chronic rhinitis or year-long allergies which means a lot of medication that you can now get rid of. ClearUp’s study shows that 72% of the users got relief after using the device and 82% preferred it over medicines. It also eliminates the hassle of constantly having to clean or sterilize nasal sprays etc.

Constantly buying pills can be expensive and your body becomes immune to it slowly which means you need stronger doses – that is not a good long-term health solution. ClearUp wanted to provide a chemical and drug-free solution to sinus and sinus related issues. It also eliminates the hassle of constantly having to clean or sterilize nasal sprays etc. Charge with the usual USB-C charger and you’re good to go!

Designer: ClearUp

This fertility tracker works like a traffic light for your family planning

It is hard enough to keep a track of what day it is in quarantine so you can only imagine the confusion to keep a track of our fertility cycles when most of us have lost the concept of how time is passing. That is when a nifty personal gadget like Daysy can really help women continue being in charge of their health.

This is a medical device and a lifestyle fertility tracker so that you can continue to monitor your body’s natural cycles in regards to ovulation and menstruation. Daysy was designed to guide you in differentiating your fertile and infertile days based on. All you have to do is take your basal body temperature under the tongue for 60 seconds and enter any relevant menstrual information. Daysy records this data to define your patterns and makes monitoring as easy as it can be – green light for fertile window and a red light if that window is temporarily closed. Think of it as a traffic light if you’re planning a family!

Daysy features an intelligent algorithm that makes instant results reliable backed by years of scientific experience and technology. Just like any smart tracker, it syncs to your phone and stores all your reports on the Daysy app making it easier to share it with your doctor or your partner if need be. The physical form of this personal device just radiates calm energy and YOU know you NEED that during your ‘lady days’ along with a tub of ice cream.

Daysy is a winner of the Red Dot Design Award 2019.

Designer: Daysy

A medical device that gives you doctor-free monitoring from top to toe!

I am guilty of going to the doctor for the smallest concern because there is no way for me to analyze what requires immediate attention. I am sure that I am not the only one who Googles symptoms and then descends into panic. It would be so much easier if there was a device like Kala, conceptual health monitoring smart kit that provides a complete non-invasive medical check-up.

A quick look at how much time, money and stress this could save us – 1/5th of doctor’s consultation time is spent on non-medical issues and there are more than 13.5 million GP appointments that do not require medical attention, most of these can be attributed to the human nature of worrying and because there is no other way of ruling out how we feel. Devices like Kala that use existing technology in innovative ways can pave the way to make monitoring devices digital, smaller, non-invasive and most importantly, accessible.

Over 60% of the world’s deaths are caused by heart disease, stroke, cancer, respiratory disease, and diabetes. The first step in diagnosing these ailments requires simple tools like a stethoscope, thermometer, blood pressure pump, and self-glucose monitor – Kala includes all of these and more. It tests lung functions, temperature, blood glucose, blood oxygen, stethoscope, electrocardiogram (ECG), blood pressure which can reduce panic doctor visits and save time on follow-ups too.

Kala uses artificial intelligence to read and translate data from the device into understandable diagnostics for the user. The smart device is trained to recognize normal and abnormal values – so it cannot diagnose diseases but it can warn you when something does not seem right about your vital statistics. It has been designed keeping in mind that apart from regular check-ups at home it also serves for emergency check-ups, hence the results are in a simple green or amber color for the user to quickly grasp what’s happening and take action if needed. It is crucial in eliminating anxiety while waiting on an appointment date and lets you monitor your health at home which can save many of us from the spiral of overthinking a small allergy or heartburn. It is also a great way to find out if it is a concerning situation and then taking the right call which can also end up saving time in many cases.

One of the coolest features is that it is independent of smartphones and the internet which is a major advantage thanks to the built-in AI but also has the sync-to-your-phone feature to look back at results. If you don’t have a smartphone that is fine too, it includes a built-in thermal printer so you don’t have to rely on any other external factors to do a well-rounded test and keep the results – this is especially helpful in lesser developed regions where users may not have smartphones to sync and track their health data. The parts are made from stainless steel which retains a clean and sterile surface. The rest of the box uses recycled plastic. One of these devices can help an entire community where medical facilities might be scarce, it makes good health accessible to everyone.

Kala is the future of having an efficient and accessible health management system for individuals, communities, and reduce the load on medical facilities.

Designer: Maximos Angelakis

This portable medical device independently detects Malaria parasites, saving millions of lives!

Malaria; a word that quite literally fills dread through our veins. In 2017 approximately 660,000 people died due to it, and even today 40% of the world’s population is at the risk of it. Developing nations especially Sub-Saharan Africa are Malaria’s most affected victims, and these countries are the most ill-equipped to deal with it. The tests currently available to detect malaria are highly limited and not at all economical. Specialized testing instruments and highly trained medical staff are required to actually handle and judge blood samples. Unable to meet these requirements for the detection of Malaria, developing nations are rampant with it. Hence Detroit based product designer Minwoo Lee designed ‘Aria’.

Aria is a portable medical product created with the sole purpose of detecting malaria utilizing Infrared Light. Aria eradicates the need for medical specialists, expensive equipment and highly trained staff. It performs the functions of all. Lee chose infrared light as the hero of the day, because it can be used to detect the presence of Malaria causing parasites in the blood, and can even ascertain the number of parasites present. ‘Attenuated Total Reflection-Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy’ is a test that harnesses infrared light to detect parasites through the molecular vibrations they create. The light increases the amount of oxygen in the blood, in turn killing the viral, bacterial and fungal toxins in the blood.

Shaped like a capsule, Aria contains a smaller plastic capsule or a mini Aria that is used for the collection of blood. Simply smear the blood sample onto mini Aria and insert it into the larger capsule. The infrared light activates and a digital microscope examines the blood. The microscope provides details and observations, and this final result is then displayed on the screen. The images of the blood cells on the screen will help to determine whether they have been infected by Malaria or not.

The actual benefit and functionality of Aria are unparalleled. It is a game-changer for the medical field, enabling the quick and efficient detection of Malaria, allowing it to be treated in its early stage, and thereby saving the lives of millions. This is a concept that needs to be transformed into a tangible product pronto! Aria is not just a design concept, it’s a future lifesaver.

Designer: Minwoo Lee