Clothing Sensors

Researchers at the London College of Fashion have developed and are testing electrical conducting inks that can be printed on fabrics as wearable electronics.  These inks are sensitive enough to changes in pressure (causing changes in conductance) that they can record the interval between the beginning of the heartbeat’s Q wave and the end of its T wave.  These waves represent the depolarization of the left ventricle and repolarization of the right ventricle.  Obviously, this would be a useful monitor for people with tachyarrhythmias, but heartbeat monitoring is a useful vital sign for many other conditions. MORE

Image Credit: Peratech, London College of Fashion, University of the Arts London, and Electonics eetimes.com