Nanoelectronics research center imec, Holst Centre and Datwyler Sealing Solutions, a leading supplier of customer specific sealing, closure and packaging solutions to global market segments, such as the Automotive, Health Care, Civil Engineering and Consumer Goods Industries, will present a novel polymer dry electrode. Soft, flexible, and optimised for skin-impedance noise, polymer dry electrodes are a promising alternative to conventionally used gel electrodes in biopotential signal recording, as well as for uncomfortable and painful dry electrodes with rigid metal pins. At next week’s mHealth Summit 2014 (Dec. 7th – 11th in Washington, D.C.), imec and Holst Centre will showcase their prototype wireless EEG headset and health patch, demonstrating their technology solutions for remote monitoring (Booth #610).
Current market solutions available include conventional gel electrodes, which are widely used for biopotential measurements such as ECG and EEG monitoring. They are administered during treatment or diagnosis by medical specialists in hospitals, and incur the drawbacks of skin irritation, arduous application and uncomfortable removal. Dry electrodes have also been introduced, and enable wireless biopotential monitoring systems for use outside the domain of the medical specialists during daily activities. However, first generation solutions consist of rigid metal pins that lend to discomfort and pain in patients.
Fabricated from ethylene propylene diene monomer (EPDM) rubber, containing various additives for optimum conductivity, flexibility and ease of fabrication, the polymer dry electrodes offer a high user comfort. Polymer composition is optimised for noise from phantoms and human skin on skin-electrode impedance, resulting in a skin-electrode impedance approximately 10 times greater than that of gel electrodes. The electrodes are directly capable of recording strong biopotential signals such as ECG, and for low-amplitude signals such as EEG.
In relation to EEG signals, the polymer electrodes are coupled with an active circuit, forming a so-called ‘active electrode.’ EEG recordings on imec’s prototype wireless EEG headset using these active polymer electrodes proved very promising results, showing similar performance compared to the performance using metal dry electrodes on imec’s wireless EEG headset. At the same time the comfort of the user is substantially improved when using polymer electrodes.
“Wearable health monitoring holds tremendous opportunities in bringing healthcare to anyone, at any place and at any time. Personal, predictive, and preventive care can improve one’s quality of life in addition to saving lives,” stated Chris Van Hoof, program direct body area networks at imec. “Imec and Holst Centre’s cutting-edge technology, enabling highly accurate and non-invasive monitoring with clinical-grade functionality, paves the way for more efficient and better healthcare.”
