Tattoos are about to get smart and we aren't talking just fashionable.
It's possible now for people to design, print, and stick on tattoos with computing capabilities.
The question is what they will do. It's a solution in search of a problem.
Harvard and MIT researchers are incorporating biosensors into tattoo inks that could change color based on what is happening in the body. Reactive inks could tell athletes if they are dehydrated or diabetics if their glucose levels change. Among the challenges are to find inks that won't fade.
MIT researchers are also looking at temporary, but beautiful, graphical, metallic tattoos that could be printed out. These tattoos could do things like turn on audio, move a mouse or turn your skin into a trackpad. They could provide or transmit health information.
These temporary tattoos could be created by the user. People could use graphics software to create a design, then print it out on special tattoo paper. After they cut out the design, they apply it to the skin as a temporary, wearable smart device. This would effectively be the first time a user has control over the look of the device, according to Tech Made Easy.
Microsoft Research is also testing and refining materials for this use. The idea will be to put the materials out in the world and let people find ways to use it.
