Respiratory Motion Sensor Measuring Capacitance Constructed across Skin in Daily Activities.

Makie Terazawa,Shinya Kumagai,Minoru Sasaki,Momoko Karita

doi:10.3390/mi9110543

Makie Terazawa, Shinya Kumagai + Show 2 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/mi9110543

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Journal: Micromachines	Publication Date: Oct 24, 2018
Citations: 13	License type: CC BY 4.0

Affiliation: Toyota Technological Institute, Meijo University

Abstract

In this work, a respiratory sensor is studied, measuring the capacitance constructed by attached electrodes on the abdomen. Based on previous findings, that skin thickness changes caused by respiration provides the signal, the fitting condition of the electrode on the skin is stabilized using a 7-μm-thick dressing film. This film can be comfortably worn for a long time, while maintaining the electrode’s position on the skin. This stabilized setup enables the detection of, not only respiration, as the cyclic capacitance change, but also of minute body volume changes over the daytime, as a change in the base line indicates the quality of the sensor signal. For this demonstration, the respiration signal is measured during the daily activity of exercise and 6-min walks.

Highlights

Sensors suitable for continuous monitoring of a patient’s condition have gained attention from the medical and healthcare fields
We found that measuring the capacitance [18] between two electrodes on the skin yields a respiration signal [19], as the capacitance is built across the gap without strain to the body
A novel respiratory sensor was studied, measuring the capacitance constructed across the skin

Summary

Introduction

Sensors suitable for continuous monitoring of a patient’s condition have gained attention from the medical and healthcare fields. Diabetic patients are required to measure their blood glucose levels [1], and some patients after an operation are required to monitor signals. The daily monitoring of a subject’s health and activity will be considered in order to detect a change in their physical condition and for early detection of diseases. There are many wearable sensors on the market. The majority are products for athletes, usually measuring heart rate, temperature and accelerations [2,3,4]. Even in sensors for healthcare applications [5,6], they rarely include a respiration sensor, as it is not established

Methods

Discussion

Conclusion