Effects of Ag-coated twisted-yarns and equivalent circuits on textile pressure sensors

Abstract

Wearable sensors have become an indispensable part of life because they reflect different aspects of human interactions and surroundings. However, the complex technologies, materials, and structures still limit their applicability. Herein, we propose an adjustable pressure sensor by designing the structure of the e-textiles. Through the tilt of the conductive yarns on the spacer fabrics, the resistance behavior can be analyzed by an equivalent circuit. These sensors show high sensitivity (gauge factor ~ 16.7) under slight pressure. In addition, the effects of conductive yarns (Ag-coated twisted yarns) are evaluated in detail based on the difference of spacer fabrics, the sensing yarns, the buckling of the conductive spun yarns, as well as the conductive twisted yarns. The technique and the analyzing method from the equivalent circuits are expected to bring great contributions to analyze the wearable pressure-touch sensors in the future.