Improving the Durability of Screen Printed Conductors on Woven Fabrics for E-Textile Applications

This paper reports the experimental investigation of the durability of screen printed conductor-based strain gauges on four fabrics of different stiffness by examining the change in the electrical resistances during and after bending. Emphasis is placed on improving the durability of the gauges for both positive and negative bending e-textile applications. The electrical resistance of the printed gauges is generally shown to degrade faster from positive bending than from negative bending. Compressive strain affects the behaviour of the gauges during bending but gauges perform best when they are close to the neutral axis of the printed fabric.