From: Matthew Gaylor (freematt@coil.com)
Date: Sun Aug 13 2000 - 09:12:33 MDT
To view the entire article, visit
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/bluesky_exnews/20000813_xex_human_id_imp.shtml
Sunday, August 13, 2000
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YOUR PAPERS, PLEASE ...
Human ID implant to be unveiled soon
'Wearers' of Digital Angel' monitored by GPS, Internet
by JoAnn Kohlbrand <BR>and Julie Foster
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A working prototype of an implant designed to monitor the
physiology and whereabouts of human wearers, known as Digital
Angel, is scheduled to be unveiled in October at an
invitation-only event in New York City -- two months ahead of
schedule.
Developed by Applied Digital Solutions, the device is said to
be the first-ever operational combination of bio-sensor
technology and Web-enabled wireless telecommunications linked
to global positioning satellite location-tracking systems.
Applied Digital Solutions Chairman Richard Sullivan said the
development of the technology has progressed well ahead of
schedule.
"We're extremely heartened by the remarkable progress made by
Dr. Peter Zhou and his entire research team, including
professors and their associates at Princeton University and the
New Jersey Institute of Technology," said Sullivan. "This
technology relates directly to the exploding wireless
marketplace. We'll be demonstrating for the first time ever
that wireless telecommunications systems and bio-sensor devices
-- capable of measuring and transmitting critical body function
data -- can be successfully linked together with GPS (global
positioning satellite) technology and integrated with the
Internet."
As previously reported in WorldNetDaily, Digital Angel is
intended to serve a number of functions. In addition to
locating missing persons and monitoring physiological data, the
device will be marketed to the world of e-commerce as a means
of verifying online consumer identity.
Similar to microchip technologies currently used as electronic
ID tags for pets, Digital Angel is a dime-sized implant,
inserted just under the skin. When implanted within a human
body, the device is powered electromechanically through the
movement of muscles and can be activated either by the "wearer"
or by a monitoring facility.
Applied Digital Solutions is also exploring avenues for
utilizing Digital Angel without implanting it.
"We are currently talking to a watch maker who is interested in
placing the device on the back of their watches," Sullivan told
WorldNetDaily. "In addition, technology is being developed that
would allow Digital Angel to function from the back of a
cellular phone, transmitting bio-sensor information when
carried by the user."
While estimates of Digital Angel's marketplace potential vary,
Sullivan and Applied Digital's partners believe they can enter
the implant into a multi-billion dollar market through various
licensing arrangements, Web-enabled wireless services and data
transactions handled by Applied Digital's Application Service
Provider center.
Those attending the event in New York City will see a working,
multimedia demonstration of the implant. A miniature sensor
device -- smaller than a grain of rice and equipped with a tiny
antenna -- will capture and wirelessly transmit a person's
vital body-function data, such as body temperature or pulse, to
an Internet-integrated ground station. In addition, the antenna
will also receive information regarding the location of the
individual from the GPS satellite. Both sets of data -- medical
information and location -- will then be wirelessly transmitted
to the ground station and made available on Web-enabled
desktop, laptop or wireless devices.
Illustration of application of Digital Angel
from DigitalAngel.net website.
Click here for a larger image.
According to Applied Digital, the demonstration will represent
the first time these technologies have been united into one
functioning system.
The New York event -- at a time, date and location to be
announced later -- will feature live presentations from top
Applied Digital executives, including Sullivan and Dr. Peter
Zhou, president and chief scientist at DigitalAngel.net, Inc.,
a wholly-owned subsidiary of Applied Digital. Attendees at the
device's unveiling ceremony will include a handpicked group of
potential joint-venture partners, as well as senior-level
players in the e-commerce, wireless and Internet industries,
and stock analysts.
Zhou is passionately enthusiastic about the device.
"I'm particularly excited about Digital Angel's ability to save
lives by remotely monitoring the medical conditions of at-risk
patients and providing emergency rescue units with the person's
exact location," he said. "I also see great potential for
Digital Angel in the area of 'location-aware' e-commerce. This
is a whole new wireless and Web-enabled frontier in which a
purchaser's actual location is integral to making a successful
sale or providing a valuable, location-critical service."
In an exclusive interview with WorldNetDaily in March, Zhou
expressed his belief that the implant will be as popular as
cell phones and vaccines.
Digital Angel, said Zhou, "will be a connection from yourself to
the electronic world. It will be your guardian, protector. It
will bring good things to you."
He added, "We will be a hybrid of electronic intelligence and
our own soul."
Applied Digital Solutions first announced it had acquired the
patent rights to a miniature digital transceiver in December
1999. Naming the device Digital Angel, ADS formed
DigitalAngel.net, Inc. to serve as the research and development
unit for the device. Since that time, ADS has actively promoted
the implant, pointing to what executives and scientists say are
lifestyle benefits of the chip.
"The first market we hope to tap into is a $10 billion
agri-industry," said Sullivan. "The FDA is requiring improved
tracking methods for beef and poultry. The Digital Angel, with
its ability to monitor body functions, can track quality from
the [animal] pens to the supermarket."
The next large market ADS hopes to tap into is that of
preventive medical tracking. Through its body function tracking
capabilities, the Digital Angel can monitor such functions as
body temperature, heartbeat and specific needs such as insulin
levels. This information can then be transmitted to a doctor or
health-care provider.
"The Digital Angel serves as an advance warning device, which
can help lower the cost of medical care," commented Sullivan.
However, despite the excitement over an early working model of
this new technology, concerns have been raised as to personal
privacy. With the integrated technology, a person's location,
health status and other personal data will be transmitted and
available via the Internet.
ADS claims, however, that privacy concerns are misplaced, since
the device can be turned off by the owner.
Additional concerns have been raised by Christians, who contend
Digital Angel could be the fulfillment of a biblical
prediction found in the book of Revelation.
Zhou, president of DigitalAngel.net, Inc., disagrees.
"I am a Christian, but I don't think [that argument] makes
sense," he told WND in March. "The purpose of the device is to
save your life and improve the quality of life. There's no
connection to the Bible."
As the technology becomes more commonplace, the debate, as well
as sales, are likely to continue growing.
"We'll soon be ready to move ahead to the production-design
phase of Digital Angel geared to specific marketplace
applications," Sullivan said. "The key message right now is
this: Digital Angel isn't a blue-sky technology. This is real.
Digital Angel breakthrough technology is here. It's live!"
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