Preliminary study of prehospital use of smart glasses

Abstract

Background: A smart glasses system is a computerized communicator with a transparent screen and video camera that can be worn as a pair of glasses. There have been no reports on the use of smart glasses in the prehospital setting.

Purpose: To conduct a preliminary investigation on whether smart glasses were smoothly used bidirectionally between the prehospital setting and the receiving hospital.

Methods: From March 1, 2022, to March 31, 2022, one smart glasses unit was installed in an ambulance at one branch of the fire department near our hospital. The physician on the computer, who received video and voice transmission from the smart glasses when the ambulance was dispatched, evaluated the transmission status with regard to video reception, voice reception, and voice transmission. In addition, the activity time was compared between cases in which the smart glasses system was used (patient) and not used (control).

Results: During the investigating period, 12 cases were analyzed as patients. The rate of good video reception was 75%, the rate of good voice reception was 50%, and the rate of good voice transmission was 25%. There was no significant change in the activity time between the patient and control groups.

Conclusion: We performed a preliminary investigation on the usability of smart glasses in the prehospital setting. Using smart glasses, patient information was shared by video and voice before arrival at the hospital, and did not affect the activity time. However, the instability of the communication status should be recognized.

Keywords: emergency department; prehospital; smart glasses; trial operation; usability.

Fig. 1

Smart glasses (VUZIX M400: AVR Japan cooperation, Tokyo). Smart glasses allow users to send their vision and voice and to view visual information in various situations using a wearable computer. LED, light‐emitting diode.

Fig. 2

Video transmission using smart glasses in the present study. The video and voice at the scene, when an emergency life‐saving technician treats the patient, are transmitted by the smart glasses (red circle) to a personal computer at our hospital via a mobile Wi‐Fi (wireless fidelity) system, which is monitored by a physician on duty. Based on the shared information, a patient acceptance system is built in the hospital. After the patient arrives at the hospital, catheterization and blood transfusion will be administered as soon as possible if necessary.