Over the course of our lives, we are required to be mindful about many things, and one such thing is replenishing our core ideas every once in a while. This is important because an individual’s ideas tend to be directly attached with the nature of their growth, so by keeping it all fresh, we give ourselves a shot at more effective progressive runs. Now, to ensure that the said dynamic shapes up just how we want, humans have devised various tools and avenues, each one moving the needle in its own unique way. Specializing within a particular regard is great when it comes to delivering optimal results, but if you have a multi-talented creation like technology, you have to consider changing your ways. Fortunately, the big call from us will pay off. In fact, the dividends of it will appear throughout the spectrum. Their most important appearance, however, came in our medical sector. Backed up with the newfound tech methodologies, the global healthcare sector of today has managed to establish a much closer relationship with patients. Even after clocking some really tall peaks, the sphere continues to move forward rather ambitiously, and that ambition shows up quite significantly in Kernel’s latest development.
Kernel, a medtech company based in California, has successfully developed a wearable helmet, which can be used to perform time domain functional near-infrared spectroscopy (TD-fNIRS) imaging of the brain. Named as Kernel Flow, the device, unlike the current brain imaging techniques, captures a non-invasive and more economically feasible brand of brain imaging. Up until now, the logistically tough-to-operate benchtop brain imaging systems have made sure that the required process goes through gazillion challenges before getting anywhere to delivering a result. However, Kernel Flow promises to address the existential issues of seamlessness and convenience without leaving anything on the table efficiency-wise.
“We demonstrated a performance similar to benchtop systems with our miniaturized device as characterized by standardized tissue and optical phantom protocols for TD-fNIRS and human neuroscience results,” explains Ryan Field, the Chief Technology Officer at Kernel.
If we shed some light on the physical makeup of Kernel Flow, we’ll see that it only weighs two kilograms. The helmet houses four plates around the head that have 52 modules in total, each one containing two laser sources. The rapid laser pulses emerging from these sources are designed to pass through the scalp, skull, and an assortment of six detectors on their way to construct an image. So far, Kernel has tested the device out on certain volunteers. While the observed results were hugely encouraging, there is still a need to make it more accommodating with elements like different hair and skin types. Nevertheless, the neurological potential of such a creation is unquestionable.
