The Most Beautiful Woman in Wireless

Look up the word "ubiquitous" in the dictionary and it's quite possible you'll find a reference to wireless communication. From Bluetooth to LANs, from personal digital assistants to cordless phones, the marketplace is saturated with wireless technology. In recent years, medical device manufacturers have started adding wireless functionality to implantables, patient-monitoring tools, and other products. And believe it or not, one important advance in wireless communication began with a 26-year-old starlet nicknamed "The Most Beautiful Woman in Films."

Before she made it big in Hollywood, Hedy Lamarr was a German movie star whose claim to fame was appearing nude on film. In 1933 she married Fritz Mandl, an Austrian munitions manufacturer with ties to the Nazis. During her tumultuous marriage to Mandl, Lamarr was privy to many conversations on advanced weaponry and avionic control systems-conversations that would later prove to be very useful. In 1937, she left Mandl and headed for the United States. MGM gave her a contract and the rest is cinematic history.

Lamarr's story as an inventor had yet to begin, however. In 1940, she began a friendship with her neighbor, composer George Antheil. Their chats about radio-controlled torpedoes led them to develop a communication system that used frequency hopping. The logic behind the system was that by changing the frequency for both the transmitter as well as the receiver, the possibility of detection or signal jamming would be reduced.

In 1942, the inventor duo got their patent and presented the idea to the U.S. Navy. Ironically, the U.S. military didn't embrace the technology until several years after the patent had expired. Yet the "Secret Communication System" Lamarr and Antheil had devised would prove to be invaluable to the electronics and communications industries. Out of their invention was born spread-spectrum technology, which has been the basis for such advances as long-range cordless phones and Wi-Fi.

Now spread-spectrum is driving exciting new trends in medical electronics. A key benefit to using spread-spectrum in hospitals, for example, is its capability to "supersaturate" the airwaves. Spread-spectrum allows multiple wireless devices to harmoniously coexist without jamming any one device's signal. With more wireless equipment appearing in operating rooms and at nursing stations, it's essential for all wireless medical devices to transmit and receive data efficiently and effectively.

As a result, the medical applications stemming from spread-spectrum continue to expand. One medical device manufacturer has come up with a wireless network to share and transmit patient data within a hospital setting. Yet another company has integrated its wireless technology into a tiny implantable device that can transmit data to other implanted devices as well as to external systems. And then there are all the patient monitors that gather physiological information, such as blood pressure, glucose level, or heart rate, and transmit the data wirelessly to a central database for tracking purposes.

The technology inspired by Lamarr and Antheil's groundbreaking invention has changed not only the way we communicate, but also how we develop medical products. Lamarr herself once said, "It is gratifying to see how an idea born more than 50 years ago during wartime is being used today to help people." We couldn't agree more, Hedy.

The Editors of MPMN

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The editors of MPMN receive hundreds of press releases on medical device components each week. Read on for what we thought were the most eye-catching products and services that have recently come across our desk.

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As medical technology becomes more advanced, the medical manufacturers that provide equipment and services must rise to meet the technology. Current developments include manufacturing smaller, complex products. This growing trend is particularly evident in extrusion and tube processing. Read more ...

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