‘Tech Tats’ — Wearable Circuit Board Tattoos on Your Skin

Chaotic Moon is working on a wearable platform where everyday in which users don’t have to make an active decision to put it on. The ‘tech tats’ bio-wearable fully integrates into the user’s life and is essentially undetectable. The project’s main focus is on providing real-time medical information for preventing serious health issues on a consistent daily basis.

Tech Tats Overview

A thin design means Tech Tats could be worn under clothing or military gear, allowing for real-time monitoring via Chaotic Moon’s mobile app. “That information could be sent directly to a medical professional,” explains CEO Ben Lamm. The studio is best known for creating completely useful, every-day items like fire-breathing drones, but Lamm considers the Tech Tat project one of the most exciting he’s worked on to date. The device works over Bluetooth Low Energy, the same wireless protocol that syncs the FitBit and Amazon Dash Button.

On the tattoo, an ATiny85 microcontroller stores and receives data from temperature sensors via electroconductive paint. (Google also using Conductive Ink for their business services notepad) The tech tattoos could be used to monitor a child’s vitals after a surgery, or provide a less public (or more, if you choose) display of fitness tracking.

Lamm also hopes the tattoos will have implications for every day life. By integrating a system akin to Apple Pay, users could gesture or finger tap to initiate payment. Instead of swiping your card, you could wave an arm (or you know, a wand. For style points. Expecto Patronum.)

The studio hasn’t announced when you can actually get a Tech Tat, but its focus on individual applications and inexpensive microcontroller suggests that Tech Tats will fall within a reasonable price range.