Embroidered electrode impedance for polyester and cotton textile substrates

Measuring electrical activity in the human body is vital for monitoring of patients and medical diagnostics. For accurate measurements, the design of biomedical electrodes is important. Bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) is a tool for monitoring vital signals from a patient that measures the resisting electrical current flow of soft tissue explicitly through the intracellular (ICF) and extracellular (ECF) fluid. Currently, BIA devices are used with commercially available clinical electrodes which establish the interface between the BIA system and the skin. Electrode impedance is an important factor to be considered when measuring skin bioelectrical impedance because any artefact or attenuation from the electrodes can distort measurements. Current clinical surface electrodes are limited in use for long term monitoring due to the ionic gel layer dehydrating over time resulting in an inaccuracy of measurements. This paper adapts dry embroidered electrodes for measuring bioelectrical impedance using alternating current at a frequency of 50 kHz. By embroidering electrodes on two different substrates we were able to identify the impact of the substrate on the electrode impedance. This study also evaluates the influence of two parameters, skin temperature and moisture, on the electrode contact on the skin and their effects on the impedance of the embroidered electrodes of the two dissimilar substrates.Peer Reviewe