Wearable Devices for Environmental Monitoring in the Built Environment: A Systematic Review

Area of Science:

• Environmental Science
• Computer Science
• Human Health

Background:

• The Internet of Things (IoT) connects numerous devices, impacting health and environmental awareness.
• Commercial wearables, like smartwatches, primarily focus on enhancing smartphone features and physical activity tracking.
• There's a growing need to understand the scientific landscape of wearables for environmental monitoring.

Purpose of the Study:

• To systematically review scientific production on wearables for environmental monitoring.
• To identify key areas of interest and findings in wearable environmental sensing research.
• To highlight limitations and suggest future directions for wearable environmental technology.

Main Methods:

• A systematic review methodology was employed to gather and analyze relevant scientific data.
• Data acquisition followed a reproducible process to ensure reliability.
• The review focused on identifying trends in wearable environmental monitoring.

Main Results:

• Air quality is the most frequently monitored environmental factor using wearables, often alongside other factors like thermal or acoustic data.
• Scientific literature shows limited exploration of thermal, visual, and acoustic environmental factors in wearable applications.
• A significant limitation is the lack of open-source hardware, hindering widespread adoption and customization.

Conclusions:

• Wearables show potential for environmental monitoring, with a strong focus on air quality.
• The scarcity of open-source wearable designs impedes scalability and innovation.
• Encouraging open-source development is essential for the proliferation and customization of environmental monitoring wearables.