Electronic Skin Patch Could Monitor Health Wirelessly

Novel electronic skin patches to monitor health status, the thickness of a human hair, could one day transmit data to a patient's cell phone and on to the doctor's office.

Researchers at the University of Illinois (Urbana-Champaign, USA) developed the patches to not only be flexible, but stretchable, so that they can move with the natural motions of the skin as people go about their normal business. Since silicon-based wafers are hard and brittle, the researcher had to structure the system boards in a strategic way that would avoid any strains or stresses that would crack or fracture the circuits, and thus designed the patches with strategically placed sections set in a wave-like pattern, which sits upon a layer of rubbery polyester engineered to have mechanical properties well matched to those of natural skin.


The patches are transferred to the skin like a temporary tattoo, with water and a backing that peels off. Van der Waals forces-- relatively weak electric forces that attract neutral molecules to one another--hold the device in place, but do not interfere with normal skin motion. A modified form of a spray-on covering is then applied over the patch. The spray protects the circuit from water and normal wear-and-tear, and keeps it on the skin for up to a week. In this format, the devices can accommodate transpiration, sweat, and even soapy water. The concept design was presented at the 243rd National Meeting & Exposition of the American Chemical Society (ACS), held during March 2012 in San Diego (CA, USA).

“A key feature of our epidermal electronics is its natural interface to the body, without wires, pins, adhesives, or gels, to allow a much more comfortable and functional system,” said developer and concept presenter John Rogers, PhD. “The technology can be used to monitor brain, heart or muscle activity in a completely noninvasive way, while a patient is at home.”

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