Stimulate InnovationBernard Loke Of BioLogic Technik | Asian science magazine

AsianScientist (March 3, 2020) Since the beginning of the 19^e century, human life has almost doubled. Then the average adult lived up to 40 years. But thanks to technological advancements in sanitation, housing and health care, people are now living so long that aging populations quickly outpace other age groups.

Yet this increase in life expectancy is both a boon and a curse. While a longer lifespan means more opportunities to work, spend time with loved ones and enjoy the pleasures of life, aging is only productive when it is ; it is accompanied by good health. Fortunately, recent innovations have made it easy for clinicians to assess the overall health of our graying compatriots.

Singapore-based start-up BioLogic Technik Ptd, for example, has developed a technology that analyzes the strength and walking of the elderly. Walking abnormalities generally indicate a multitude of health problems, ranging from arthritis to neurological disorders like Alzheimer's and Parkinson's, or are simply part of the frailty of aging.

As the founder of BioLogics Bernard Loke shares below, such a tool has only been made possible thanks to open innovation. In this interview with IPI, find out how a natural aptitude for open innovation has led to the company's success in building smart technologies for an aging population.

1. What is the main skill of your company?

We are a high tech start-up from Singapore focused on medical devices. Our product is an integrated biomechanical algorithm that analyzes gait and measures strength. It has been used in hospitals and nursing homes. So far, we have been able to detect a weak gait with 90% accuracy.

2. Was there a turning point in your history that convinced you that open innovation was the right way to develop?

My background in engineering and finance as well as my experience in the aviation sector contributed to this. In the aeronautics industry, most products and services come from multiple industries and partners. I have been exposed to many different technologies offered by a wide range of companies. Therefore, open innovation is something natural for me.

3. How has open innovation benefited your business so far?

Most of my clients work in the health sector, ranging from hospitals to nursing homes. Coming from a non-clinical setting, I am fortunate to have witnessed the openness of clinicians to adopt technologies that are outside their clinical domain. This opening offers great opportunities for innovators like me to contribute to the health sector. Given that the world's population is aging rapidly, this is a very exciting time to explore new technologies in this area.

4. How do you encourage an open culture of innovation in your business?

To satisfy our customers, different types of sensor technologies are required. We buy these technologies elsewhere because it is not profitable to develop them in-house. To this end, we recently granted a license to a local polytechnic.

Open innovation in our business can also sometimes be introspective. In a regular brainstorming session, we explore different applications of our biomechanics algorithm which is mainly used by clinicians. After several sessions, we decided to adapt the technology specifically for the elderly population. Thanks to this conceptual orientation, the team was able to go beyond our current business environment and finally decided to create a personalized exercise program for the elderly. During this process, we also contacted sports science experts to help develop the program. Recently, we have completed our proof of concept. The whole process, from ideation to communication with external experts and technical development, took around six months.

Another example was when we developed our own Internet of Things (IoT) platform to activate our various sensors. After two IoT projects, we initiated a discussion within the company, with the aim of monetizing our know-how in this field. Finally, the team decided to IoT platform to third parties as a software solution. We were very pleased with this development as it meant that everyone on the team was allowed to think outside the box.

5. What lessons have you learned in the process of engaging in open innovation?

We learned many lessons during our journey, such as being open-minded to tap into expertise internally or beyond. This helped us to strengthen our internal skills in the evaluation of new technologies, including emerging innovations that we are not aware of.

Asian Scientist Magazine is a media partner of Intellectual Property Intermediary (IPI) Singapore.

Copyright: IPI Singapore. Read the original article here.
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