Chapter 5 - E-skin and wearable systems for health care

Abstract

Seamless integration of biological systems with electronics has huge implications for basic research from reverse engineering the brain to applications such as bidirectional interfaces with prosthesis. This will enable instant processing and analysis of biological signals in the form of electrical signals, as well as for real-time bioelectronic actuation. Thanks to the advancements in bioelectronics technology, in a not too distant future, it may become possible to restore vision or reverse the effects of spinal cord injury. The bioelectronic interfaces could be in various integrable forms namely wearables, implantables, or ingestibles. Skin, the largest external organ, is an excellent site for bioelectronic interfaces. Artificial electronic skin (e-skin) with various components such as sensors, actuators, communication, signal processing, energy harvesting and storage capabilities, and conformable and flexible-form factor could form a topical or implantable second skin that integrates with natural skin. With integration into prostheses and health-care devices such as catheters, the e-skin could address several existing problems in health care as well as lead to the realization of many concepts previously considered science fiction. This chapter presents some of the key features of the e-skin and along with potential applications, particularly related to health care. The chapter is organized as follows: Section 5.2 presents various components of flexible e-skin including various sensors, active devices, interconnects/electrode, communication structures, etc. Section 5.3 presents various applications of e-skin, mainly related to health care. This section is divided into topical (over the skin), implantable (under the skin), and inanimato (for inanimate objects such as prostheses and surgical tools) applications. Fig. 6.1 summarizes the typical applications of e-skin systems namely, (i) topical e-skin (e-skin for health monitoring, insole), (ii) implantable e-skin (e-skin for brain or heart interface), and (iii) inanimato-e-skin (e-skin for prosthesis). Finally, a summary of the chapter is presented in the final section.