The United States Department of Defense invented a wearable that predicts infections in real-time. The RATE program invented a device during the pandemic to monitor a service member's health and provide early alerts.

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ARLINGTON, VA - SEPTEMBER 27: A light shines on the seal of the Department of Defense during a briefing at the Pentagon, September 27, 2007 in Arlington, Virginia. Today was Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Peter Pace's last official day as Joint Chief Chairman.

Real-Time Infection Prediction

The US Defense Department's Defense Innovation Unit has collaborated with a private sector and developed a wearable device that can identify infections rapidly. According to Interesting Engineering, this is called the Rapid Assessment of Threat Exposure Project or the RATE Program.

The new program will use an artificial intelligence algorithm that is trained to utilize hospital-acquired data from cases of several diseases, which will leverage biometric data from commercial-grade wearables. These devices will enable early detection up to 48 hours before symptoms appear, with a prediction up to six days in advance.

RATE Program Manager Jeff Schneider stated that the department has been planning to invest in maintaining the readiness of its workforce to conduct missions as essential as this. This effort comes to detect infectious diseases in its service members, such as COVID-19 which has been an unpredictable variable disease. 

Wearble's Algorithm

Schneider added that the used algorithm for this device was featured in a journal called Nature's Scientific Reports, published in 2022. This highlighted the efficacy of wearables powered by the algorithm to aid military readiness. 

To incorporate the algorithm through the device, the department worked with a technology company called Philips to develop this technology. The private company is now seeking to take it to the next level by commercializing and scaling of the new wearables. 

Philips Integrated Technology Solutions Head Navin Natoewal stated that the company can use biomarker data from any commercial wearables as they made their algorithm device agnostic. "We then run those markers against our clinical data sets in the cloud to create a RATE wellness score. The score has proven to be indicative of the onset of infections," he added.

Device Funding

As per the press release, RATE was one of the first ten pilot programs through the established initiative of the department called Accelerate the Procurement and Fielding of Innovative Technologies. 

Aside from the allocated funds for developing this device, the department received additional funding of $10 million to add 4,500 more users of the wearable technology across several departments of the country. Among the groups that will receive the new technology are the Air Combat Command's 360 first sergeants. 

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Talent Management and Assessments Wing Director Air Force Maj. Michael Vernale said that the technology will improve their lives and the lives that their airmen are serving, especially since the department's first sergeants serve as the foundation of all the organizations in the US Air Force. 

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