Big data and your bladder: sensors detect when elderly need to pee

Sensors in a senior citizen’s refrigerator, bathroom and bedroom tell care manager how much they have slept, and whether they have eaten and used the bathroom

In other experiments, a wearable sensor monitors bladder size to show when a patient needs to urinate, and AI-driven phone calls check for health abnormalities

Reading Time:2 minutes

Elderly residents rest in the grounds of a temple in Tokyo. Japan suffers from a shortage of carers and an ageing population. The solution the country's come up with: wearables, sensors and data that can help people look after their older clients remotely. Photo: AFP

Published: 2:00am, 15 Jun 2020Updated: 8:28pm, 15 Jun 2020

Devices connected to the internet and artificial intelligence (AI) are being introduced to nursing care in Japan. There is a shortage of carers in the country because of its ageing society and because the coronavirus pandemic is restricting face-to-face contact.

Sensors monitor the lifestyle habits of the elderly, while AI-initiated phone calls check on the elderly daily, allowing carers to look after them remotely.

“You went to the bathroom many times yesterday,” a care manager says over the phone to a man as he checks data on his recent routine.

The man’s home is equipped with sensors installed in the bathroom, bedroom and refrigerator, as well as attached to doors, providing the care manager with data via the internet on how frequently he uses the bathroom, how long he sleeps and whether he has eaten.

A nurse talking to a woman at a nursing home in Tokyo. The number of care workers in Japan stood at about 1.95 million in 2017. Photo: AFP

The sensors do not emit light or sound so as not to bother the householder.

Select Voice

Choose your listening speed

Get through articles 2x faster

1.25x

250 WPM

Slow

Average

Fast

00:0000:00

1.25x