The world of assistive technology (AT) changes on a daily basis for a variety of reasons. Advancements in technology are the main reason for this and as an AT provider it’s IPAT’s job to stay on top of all the developments. We like to provide you with the up to date news and on occasion like to get you thinking about technologies that may have a big impact on the disability technology community and society as a whole, IBM 5 in 5.
In this article we will be talking about graphene and the implications it may have on the AT field. For those of you not in the know, graphene is a layer of carbon only one atom thick and now has the distinction of being the strongest material in the world. Some of the initial possibilities are:
The promise of graphene has been around for several years so who knows what the future will bring. Then again who thought we would all have computers in our pockets five years ago. Ok, smartphones aren’t really computers, but they have come really close and it of course depends on what you are doing.
I would like to take a shot at the potential implications graphene might have on the AT field.
-Faster charging-
AT users that require charging a device, e.g. communication devices, portable devices for vision, learning, and memory, could simply plug their device in for a very short time and they would be on the go again.
-Smaller flexible devices-
The introduction of a flexible interface could make mounting easier and the device size can be customized to the end user.
-Faster device speed-
For the user who needs up to date information the processing speed will be greatly increased
These are just a few of possibilities that graphene promises. How do you think graphene may impact AT in the future?
Take a look at the following video for more information about graphene.