From tracking your daily target of 10,000 steps to using a smart watch to check our bank account, many of us already take advantage of wearable technology.

But electronics that can be worn on the body are about more than personal convenience. They also can help solve large-scale societal problems.

Take the ageing population, “poised to become one of the most significant social transformations of the twenty-first century”, according to the United Nations. The number of people aged 60 years or over is expected to more than double by 2050.