L'Oreal Designs Patch to Protect Users from the Sun

The My UV patch; Image via Fortune

We know the dangers of staying out in the sun, and the importance of always protecting ourselves, but how do we know when we've had too much sun (aside from when we look like a lobster, in which case it's too late)? L'Oreal has developed a small, wearable patch called My UV patch, which detects changing skin tone colors when exposed to UV rays.

According to Fortune, users can take a picture of the patch and upload it to a mobile app, which analyzes the patch's dye squares and determines whether the user should find some shade. The patch is most effective when worn on the back of the user's hand for up to five days.

The technology is currently in beta form, but L'Oreal plans to widely release it in 2016 under its dermatological skincare brand, LA Roche-Posay.

Guive Balooch, global vice president of L'Oreal's Technology Incubator, told Fortune that the company designed the device to be as thin as possible and keep end-users safe.

"It is a new way to educate consumers about their personal exposure to UV," Balooch told Fortune.

Do you think this will be an effective tool for protecting people against the sun? With the rising popularity of wearables, can this kind of technology make a splash in the promotions industry? Let us know in the comment section!