Jump to content

LifeBEAM

Add links
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Daniel kenneth (talk | contribs) at 17:59, 30 May 2016 (fix). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Hi LaMona I agree that it's a good idea to say when each product was introduced, so I've done that, below. I respectfully disagree with the suggestion that consumer reviews should be included. Reviews, such as what you would find on Amazon.com, blogs or the comments section of magazine articles, don't count as verifiable sources under Wikipedia rules.WP:SOURCES These would largely fall under the "self-published" prohibition. It would also be impossible for me to fairly synthesize the hundreds of consumer/professional reviews of these products myself, as that would count as original research under WP:NOR. If a reliable source had synthesized reviews, I think we could include it (e.g. Rotten Tomatoes for movies), but I find no source that does this for any of these products. I also agree that intended "use of funds" for the recent fundraising rounds involves speculation as to future products. WP:CBALL So this is properly omitted. The actual funds raised, though, is a standard part of any company article where there has been venture financing. The rationale is that the amount of venture financing gives the reader perspective as to the size of the company. And for many people researching a company for business purposes, the size of any investment is important information. See, for example, AlienVault, Beepi, Luminoso. These are equivalent mid-sized companies. So I've re-inserted that part of the sentence, moving it to the bottom of History, and citing to the Wall Street Journal and Venture Beat, both prominent secondary sources... I've slightly modified the language in the article about pilots losing their lives, so it fits more closely to the sourcing, which I had been trying to paraphrase without copying. The article text reads: “They lost their lives because they didn’t have the biometric data they needed to stay safe.” Thanks for your time and attention and I am available to respond to any other suggestions.BC1278 (talk) 23:26, 2 May 2016 (UTC)BC1278.
Hi, BC1278. I probably said that wrong, but by consumer reviews I meant those aimed at consumers of the products, and those were the ones I listed. Not all may have been ideal sources, but if the sources are reliable then actual reviews of the products are important. It may be too soon for there to be many, but right now we have the company view, but not the consumer view, and both are needed. As for people researching the company for business purposes, I would hope they have the sense to go to a business source rather than Wikipedia, which is NOT a reliable source of information, by its own definition. There are myriad newspapers and magazines that report on business news that would be much better sources for that kind of information. Including the figure in the body of the article is fine, but not having it would not change the notability of the company. LaMona (talk) 00:19, 3 May 2016 (UTC)
Hi LaMona I did misunderstand. Well, there are many dozens of reviews of these products from mainstream and specialist publications. I have more than 100, not counting the licensed products. Most are very favorable. I'd have a hard time summarizing or cherry picking from them without seeming like I was violating the policy against taking a promotional tone. I looked at Fitbit as a model before doing this article. It doesn't include reviews for consumers. As of now, the LifeBEAM article just describes the products without saying whether they're considered to be good or not by reviewers. Since I feel uncomfortable summarizing individual reviews (and I feel most anyone would have the same problem unless they were citing to a source that summarized consensus) I just added a sentence each in the "helmet" and "sports cap" sections noting the existence of reviews and providing citations for a few of the big ones that show up high on Google search. The helmet and hat are their main consumer products as of now. I'm still not sure it's a great idea to even cite to the reviews as per WP:SOURCES, but we can see if anyone else objects. I could also go into more technical spec detail for each consumer product, the same way it's done in the Fitbit article. Should I do that? Thanks for your assistance. BC1278 (talk) 01:05, 3 May 2016 (UTC)BC1278
LifeBEAM
Company typeIncorporated
Founded2011
FounderOmri Yoffee, Zvika Orron
Number of locations
New York
Area served
Global
Key people
Omri Yofee, CEO; Zvika Orron, CTO
Websitewww.life-beam.com

LifeBEAM, founded in 2011, is a wearable technology company that uses bio-sensors for measuring physiological responses, such as heart rate, blood flow and oxygen saturation.[1][2] The technology was originally developed for monitoring pilots, astronauts and special forces through sensors in their helmets. It was then expanded to consumer fitness products.[3]

History

The company was founded by air force former pilots, Omri Yoffe[1] and Zvika Orron, [4] looking for a way to improve pilot monitoring during the physical challenges of flying.[1] Its first products tracked the heart rate and blood flow of air force pilots and astronauts, by embedding sensors in their helmets, as they pulled multiple Gs.[2] Yoffee says the founders saw the need for the product because pilots sometimes died when they didn't have proper biometric data.[5] Optical head sensors were chosen to not interfere with pilot performance.[4] The Israeli Air Force helped test the technology.[6]

The U.S. Air Force and NASA have used the products.[1] The technology was adapted and licensed for wearables by Samsung and Under Armour, among others,[7] before introducing consumer products.[2]

The company has research and development centers in Los Angeles, Israel and Asia.[1]

It raised $16 million in March, 2016, bringing its total investment to $19 million. [7][2]

Consumer Products

LifeBEAM technology is embedded in the Samsung Simband platform for smart watches, Samsung’s competitive platform to the Apple Watch. LifeBEAM's algorithms are used in Simband sensors, measuring heart rate, calories and steps.[8] The platform became available in late 2014.[9]

The technology powers the heart rate monitoring feature in Under Armour's Wireless Headphones[10], released at CES in January of 2016.[11] It also powers the 2XU Smart Hat, first reviewed in January 2016.[12]

Helmet

In 2013, LifeBEAM used crowdsourced funding platform IndieGogo to fund a sensor-rich bicycle helmet. The helmet uses an optical sensor instead of an ECG chest strap to measure an athlete’s heart rate.[4] The data collected from the optical sensor is transmitted to a mobile phone or device using Bluetooth or ANT+ so that athletes can keep track of their heart rate in real time.[4]

The LifeBEAM Smart Helmet has been reviewed in publications such as Gear Patrol,[13] Cycling Tips,[14] and Cycling Tech Review,[15] and Gear Junkie.[16]

The company further commercialized the product with the release of co-branded products with Lazer Helmets. [17] The first edition was released in May of 2014 [18] and the second edition, the Lazer LifeBEAM 2.0, in December of 2015. [19]

Sports Cap

The company offers a sports cap, the LifeBEAM Hat, released in November of 2014, that provides biorhythm collection for runners by measuring heart rate, cadence and calories burned.[20][21]

The LifeBEAM Hat has been reviewed in publications such as CNET,[21] Time Magazine[20] and Tom's Guide.[22]

Aerospace Products

LifeBEAM technology is integrated into a helmet for pilots developed by Elbit that measures blood flow (including oxygen saturation) across a pilot's forehead, warning of impending G-LOC or hypoxiam, and switching to auto-pilot if the pilot loses consciousness or goes into hypoxia.[23]

The optical technology is integrated into Elbit’s smart helmets for F-16 pilots, released in June 2015, measuring blood flow (perfusion), pulse rate, and SpO2. Algorithms integrate the pilot’s physiology, aircraft physics (G-forces, velocity, altitude & positioning) and the pilot’s head & body posture to sense life-threatening problems and notify the air and ground crew.[24]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Gagliordi, Natalie (24 March 2016). "LifeBEAM nabs $16 million to expand AI-based wearable fitness tech". ZDNet. Retrieved 8 April 2016.
  2. ^ a b c d Zakrzewski, Cat (24 March 2016). "LifeBEAM Grabs $16M for Wearable Exercise Technology". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 8 April 2016.
  3. ^ Shamah, David (5 November 2014). "For athletes, Israeli 'smart hat' beats Apple on price, timing". Times of Israel. Retrieved 9 April 2016.
  4. ^ a b c d King, Rawlson (29 August 2014). "LifeBEAM: An interview with Zvika Orron, CTO and Co-Founder". Biometric Update. Retrieved 8 April 2016.
  5. ^ Scaduto, Laura (25 August 2015). "Technology Like You've Never Worn It Before". Run Haven. Retrieved 9 April 2016.
  6. ^ Getanyo, Elan (January 2012). "Helmet Will Alert & Allow Ground Control To Take Over". Israel Air Force Journal. {{cite news}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help)
  7. ^ a b Nanclares, Sindy (24 March 2016). "LifeBeam scores $16 million to help you track your workout". Venture Beat. Retrieved 8 April 2016.
  8. ^ Shamah, David (20 November 2014). "Israeli start-up is Samsung's secret weapon against Apple Watch". Times of Israel. Retrieved 8 April 2016.
  9. ^ Bell, Karissa (12 November 2014). "First look at Simband, Samsung's health-tracking wearable of the future". Mashable. Retrieved 2 May 2016.
  10. ^ Thoma, Matthew (25 February 2016). "LifeBEAM technology powers Under Armour's wireless heart rate headphones". Future Sport. Retrieved 8 April 2016.
  11. ^ Lamkin, Paul (5 January 2016). "Under Armour Headphones Wireless Heart Rate tune in for bpm training". CNET. Retrieved 2 May 2016.
  12. ^ Ritterbeck, Molly (27 January 2016). "8 Healthy Tech Innovations That Are Totally Worth Splurging On". Shape. Retrieved 20 April 2016.
  13. ^ Berger, Jeremy (3 July 2014). "LifeBeam Smart Helmet review". Gear Patrol. Retrieved 3 May 2016.
  14. ^ Matt, de Neef (15 January 2015). "LifeBeam Smart Helmet review". Cycling Tips. Retrieved 3 May 2016.
  15. ^ Whiten, Simon (26 February 2016). "LifeBEAM Helmet Review". Cycle Tech Review. Retrieved 3 May 2016.
  16. ^ McCoy, Sean (25 September 2014). "'Smart' Hat, Helmet Monitor Heart Rate". Gear Junkie. Retrieved 3 May 2016.
  17. ^ Gil, Lory (25 August 2015). "LifeBeam and Lazer Sport smart helmets set for Eurobike 2015 launch". Wareable. Retrieved 20 April 2016.
  18. ^ Huang, James (30 May 2014). "Lazer Genesis LifeBEAM helmet". bikeradar. Retrieved 2 May 2016.
  19. ^ Levitch, Colin (1 December 2015). "Lazer LifeBEAM 2.0". bikeradar. Retrieved 2 May 2016.
  20. ^ a b Pullen, John Patrick (13 November 2014). "How to Get in Shape Using Technology: 6 New Gadgets You Have to Have". Time. Retrieved 9 April 2016.
  21. ^ a b Domanico, Anthony (11 November 2014). "Finally, a fitness tracker you wear on your head". CNET. Retrieved 8 April 2016.
  22. ^ Palladino, Valentina (4 November 2014). "LifeBEAM Smart Hat Takes Fitness Tracking Head-On". Tom's Guide. Retrieved 3 May 2016.
  23. ^ Lappin, Yaakov (15 June 2015). "New Israeli device enables jet to take over if pilot passes out". iPost. Retrieved 9 April 2016.
  24. ^ "LifeBEAM Brings F-16 Fighter-Jet Sensor Technology to Help Bike Rider". Tech Times. 7 March 2013. Retrieved 9 April 2016.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=LifeBEAM&oldid=722881350"