A Multifunctional Integrated Circuit Router for Body Area Network Wearable Systems

A multifunctional router IC to be included in the nodes of a wearable body sensor network is described and evaluated. The router targets different application scenarios, especially those including tens of sensors, embedded into textile materials and with high data-rate communication demands. The router IC supports two different functionality sets, one for sensor nodes and another for the base node, both based on the same circuit module. The nodes are connected to each other by means of woven thick conductive yarns forming a mesh topology with the base node at the center. From the standpoint of the network, each sensor node is a four port router capable of handling packets from destination nodes to the base node, with sufficient redundant paths. The adopted hybrid circuit and packet switching scheme significantly improve network performance in terms of end-to-end delay, throughput and power consumption. The IC also implements a highly precise, sub-microsecond one-way time synchronization protocol which is used for time stamping the acquired data. The communication module was implemented in a 4-metal, 0.35 μm CMOS technology. The maximum data rate of the system is 35 Mbps while supporting up to 250 sensors, which exceeds current BAN applications scenarios.This work was supported in part by the Fundação para a Ciéncia e a Tecnologia (FCT) (Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology) under Project PROLIMB PTDC/EEAELC/103683/2008 and through the Ph.D. Grant SFRH/BD/75324/2010, and in part by the CREaTION, FCT/MEC through national funds and co-funded by the FEDER-PT2020 partnership agreement under Project UIDB/EEA/50008/2020, Project CONQUEST (CMU/ECE/030/2017), Project COST CA15104, and ORCIP. (Corresponding author: Fardin Derogarian Miyandoab.)info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

A body area network for wearable health monitoring : conductive fabric garment utilizing DC-power-line carrier communication

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, 2007.This electronic version was submitted by the student author. The certified thesis is available in the Institute Archives and Special Collections.Includes bibliographical references (p. 112-116).Wearable computing applications are becoming increasingly present in our lives. Of the many wearable computing applications, wearable health monitoring may have the most potential to make a lasting positive impact. The ability to remotely monitor physiological signals such as respiration, motion, and temperature has benefits for populations such as elderly citizens, fitness professionals, and soldiers in the battlefield. To fully integrate wearable networks into a user's daily life, these systems must be minimally invasive and minimally intrusive. At the same time, such wearable networks require multiple sensors and electronic components to be mounted on the body. Unfortunately, typical off-the-shelf components of this nature are heavy, bulky, and don't integrate well with the human form. Thus, it is critical to figure out how best to minimize the physical and mental burden that these systems place on the user. To address these problems, we propose a new method of designing wearable health monitoring networks by combining electrically conductive fabrics and power-line communication technology. Electrically conductive fabrics are useful in that they feel and behave like normally worn clothing but also have the ability to transmit data and power.(cont.) To fully exploit the conductive fabric as a transmission medium, we also use power-line communication technology. Power-line communication allows for simultaneous power and data transmission over a shared medium. The use of these two technologies will allow us to significantly reduce the amount of metal cabling on the body and to reduce overall system bulk and weight. With this project, we design the DC-PLC system that will act as the physical layer of the architecture. Next, we construct a prototype body area network, and derive analytical models for predicting garment electrostatic and electro-dynamic properties using Maxwell's equations, and verify using empirical data and finite-element analysis. Finally, we will determine relevant rules and guidelines for the design and construction of such garments.by Eric R. Wade.Ph.D

Smart Devices and Systems for Wearable Applications

Wearable technologies need a smooth and unobtrusive integration of electronics and smart materials into textiles. The integration of sensors, actuators and computing technologies able to sense, react and adapt to external stimuli, is the expression of a new generation of wearable devices. The vision of wearable computing describes a system made by embedded, low power and wireless electronics coupled with smart and reliable sensors - as an integrated part of textile structure or directly in contact with the human body. Therefore, such system must maintain its sensing capabilities under the demand of normal clothing or textile substrate, which can impose severe mechanical deformation to the underlying garment/substrate. The objective of this thesis is to introduce a novel technological contribution for the next generation of wearable devices adopting a multidisciplinary approach in which knowledge of circuit design with Ultra-Wide Band and Bluetooth Low Energy technology, realization of smart piezoresistive / piezocapacitive and electro-active material, electro-mechanical characterization, design of read-out circuits and system integration find a fundamental and necessary synergy. The context and the results presented in this thesis follow an “applications driven” method in terms of wearable technology. A proof of concept has been designed and developed for each addressed issue. The solutions proposed are aimed to demonstrate the integration of a touch/pressure sensor into a fabric for space debris detection (CApture DEorbiting Target project), the effectiveness of the Ultra-Wide Band technology as an ultra-low power data transmission option compared with well known Bluetooth (IR-UWB data transmission project) and to solve issues concerning human proximity estimation (IR-UWB Face-to-Face Interaction and Proximity Sensor), wearable actuator for medical applications (EAPtics project) and aerospace physiology countermeasure (Gravity Loading Countermeasure Skinsuit project)

Analysis of a compact multi-band textile antenna for WBAN and WLAN applications

A dual-band wearable antenna is designed on a textile material. The design operates at ISM bands available for Wireless Body Area Network (WBAN) and Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) with an input match better than -15 dB. The antenna is designed by using Computational Electromagnetic Software (CEMS) based on Finite-Difference Time-Domain (FDTD) method. A three-layer phantom model including skin, fat and muscle has been considered to compute the specific absorption rate (SAR). The maximum value of SAR averaged over 1g and 10g of tissue is less than 1.6 W/Kg and 2 W/Kg, respectively, when the maximum incident power of the antenna is 63 mW. These values are incompliance with the international electromagnetic safety standards