Wearable Scanner Platform Based on Fiber Sensor Array for Real Time Breath Detection

Abstract

In the near future wearable sensors when integrated into garments will have a significant impact on the future of digital health care. A new wireless T-shirt based on non-invasive network sensors was developed and tested recently as a scanner for real time breath detection of mainly male gender volunteers. The sensor is made of flexible glass fiber antenna emitting at 2.45 GHz and connected to a Bluetooth transmitter. The scanner is a network of six sensors integrated into a stretchable textile and placed in a well defined position on the thorax and on the abdomen. The breathing signal is extracted from the received signal strength indicator (RSSI) signal emitted from the sensors array and detected by a base station. In this work, we tested the feasibility assessment for breath monitoring of five female gender volunteers of different age and physical morphology in standing positions using the designed male-shape T-shirt. As a result, the wearable scanner detected successfully the breathing rates of the female volunteers with a frequency varying from 0.27 Hz to 0.40 Hz.