Design and Integration of Wearable Devices in Textiles

In this article, the design, production method, integration and characterization of textile sensors for the continuous monitoring of cardiac and respiration vital signals are presented. Textile electrodes, capacitive and piezoresistive sensors and respective interconnect plate were developed and integrated in elastic and adjustable chest bands, using a 6-needle digital embroidery machine and electrically conductive commercial threads. The signal ́s waveforms were recorded via PC with a data acquisition module and a LabView program. The signal to noise ratio of textile electrodes, having distinctive surface morphologies, that were either textured or smooth accordingly with the embroidery pattern used, were analyzed with Matlab. The quantitative method indicated differences between the two types of textile electrodes but performances comparable to standard Ag/AgCl gel electrodes. The sensors and interconnect plate were fully realized with the embroidery stitching method with textile fabrics and threads, and have a compact design, are lightweight and washable. The method offers great versatility for custom demand, in terms of sensor design and materials. Copyright © 2014 IFSA Publishing, S. L.