Experts in the world of sensors gather to talk technology

By Jaedda Armstrong

Imagine your doctor using a device that can locate your veins without repeatedly stabbing your arm with a needle. What about a device that can sense a concealed weapon from far away?

On Thursday, about 55 Hampton Roads technology professionals and researchers gathered at a forum to discuss devices such as these and the sensors that make them work.

"Sensors are everywhere," said Bill Bean, director of the Technology and Business Center at the College of William and Mary. He helped organize the forum at Hampton-based Measurement Specialties, an international company that designs and manufactures sensors.

"When you step on a bathroom scale, a sensor translates into weight," Bean said. "A car is full of sensors. When your brakes aren't working and your fuel is low, it's a sensor that lets you know."

T he forum, which was put on by the Hampton Roads Technology Council and the Hampton Roads Research Partnership, was for industry and academic professionals to share their latest sensor-related projects and discuss trends.

Students in the applied science department at W&M are working on a device to detect a hidden weapon.

"The goal is to detect the weapon from a long enough distance so that if they blow themselves up, they won't get on you," said Mark Hinders, the department's chair, who declined to give details about how the technology will work. "The key to that is picking up the particular reflections that are due to the weapon."

Jason Naramore, a biomedical engineer at CW Optics, a technology company that specializes in hardware and software development of optical and laser devices, presented a device called "ivWatch " that can detect whether a patient experiences pain from a venipuncture.

"When nurses and doctors insert an IV into the blood vessels, there is a risk that the IV fluid could leak into surrounding tissue. This is called infiltration," said Naramore, pointing to a picture of a hand that had been decayed to the bone because of an insertion. "This is a serious problem. Especially for those patients who are unable to communicate with their caregiver about their pain."

During the four-hour presentation, other devices were introduced, including a hospital-bed sensor that records body temperature and a sensor robot that detects its surroundings.

"There's just a lot of interesting technology in development right here in our area," Bean said. "This is just to get people to share what they are doing in their field."

Jaedda Armstrong, (757) 222-5846, jaedda.armstrong@pilotonline.com