Samsung showed off its WELT (short for “wellness belt”) smart healthcare belt at CES 2016. Developed under the umbrella of the Samsung Creative Lab (C-Lab), it is one of five projects that became an independent startup company after Samsung deemed it to be not only creative but also having high potential for commercial success.
“This year is the fourth year since C-Lab was initiated,” said Lee Jae Il, Director of DMC R&D Center, Samsung Electronics. “To date, we have had 130 projects with 480 employees participating. Among those, 40 projects have been transferred to a business division to be developed as commercial products. Recently at global conventions such as CES and MWC, we have released outstanding C-Lab projects as a proactive effort to increase ties with actual business.”
Virtually indistinguishable from a regular belt, the Samsung WELT comes with an array of sensors built into the belt buckle. It uses these to measure your waistline and pass the information to a smartphone app. The sensors track changes in belt tension to track overeating or long-term weight gain. It can also track the length of periods of inactivity and count your daily steps.
As an independent company, WELT will now aim to bring its smart belt to market sometime in the second half of the year. In order to do so, it will first look to complete product development and launch marketing activities. There is no word yet on exactly when the WELT could launch and how much it would sell for.
Source : Samsung