SBIR Phase I: Skin-Voltage Biometric Sensing Using Highly Conductive Fabric Electrodes on Wearable Garments

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The broader impact/commercial potential of this Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project is to broaden access to healthcare data. Users of the system developed in this project can take biometric measurements such as heart rate, muscle-activity, and body mass calculations in real-time, with data collected through sensors embedded into clothing. The innovation enables vital measurements to be taken, both inside and outside of clinical environments, while reducing instrumentation weight and cost requirements. This fabric-based technology can potentially serve users ranging from medical professionals to everyday consumers who will more easily adopt wearable soft-material products in lieu of traditional hardware devices. Specialized sectors such as physical therapy, pre-surgical studies, sports labs, and out-patient care have the highest growth opportunity for new technology adoption. Complementing the rapid growth of telehealth, bio-sensing capabilities for real-time and remote tracking will improve patient compliance and aid health care workers by providing better access to comprehensive vital measurement data.This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project involves material science research in conductive threads and fabrics. These soft goods can bend, stretch, and compress along the body where they are worn. In addition, their electromechanical characteristics allow them to pick up small voltage and current signals that are naturally generated from the body, specifically from the heart, muscles, and the brain. By strategically weaving these materials within a shirt, small voltages for EKG (heart), EMG (muscle), EEG (brain), and BIA (water and body mass content) can be simultaneously captured and measured for heart rate, muscle activity, brain activity, and water and fat content measurements. The technical research will involve innovation in fabric-materials optimized for small signal and low noise pickup and design of a comfortable garment incorporating multiple fabric-based electrodes for simultaneous pickup of EKG/EMG/BIA signals. The project will also develop new signal processing algorithms to transform raw voltages to real-time signals transmitted wirelessly. The desired technical result is a functional and wearable prototype with end-to-end communication from the fabric through the garment to a receiving mobile or desktop app visualizing the processed data for heart rate, muscle activity, and body mass analysis.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.