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Graphene oxide: Nylon ECG sensors for wearable IoT healthcare—nanomaterial and SoC interface

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Abstract

The Internet of Things (IoT) presents opportunities to address a variety of systemic, metabolic healthcare issues. Cardiovascular disease and diabetes are among the greatest contributors to premature death worldwide. Wireless wearable continuous monitoring systems such as ECG sensors connected to the IoT can greatly decrease the risk of death related to cardiac issues by providing valuable long-term information to physicians, as well as immediate contact with emergency services in the event of a heart attack or stroke. In this report we discuss the fabrication, characterization and validation of composite fabric ECG sensors made from Nylon® coated with reduced graphene oxide (rGOx) as part of a self-powered wearable IoT sensor. We utilize an electronic probing station to measure electrical properties, take live ECG data to measure signal reliability, and provide detailed surface characterization through scanning electron microscopy. Finally, bonding between the layers of the composite and between composite and the Nylon® is analyzed by Fourier transform Infrared spectroscopy. Furthermore, a low power analog front end circuit designed in 65 nm CMOS process is presented to interface the sensor with a system on chip used in a wearable IoT healthcare device.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the Mubadala and SRC through 2013-HJ-2440 and in part, through the Mubadala SRC task 2011-KJ-2190. KL and AFI acknowledge 2012-KUIRF-L2 support. We acknowledge assistance of Dr. Y. A. Samad in early stages of rGOx growth, and we thank A. Devarajan for her assistance. The authors would like to thank Prof. A. Khandoker (KU) for the use of equipment. A part of this work was conducted in the KU Core Nanocharacterization Facilities (KU CNCF).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Khalifa University of Science and Technology, Abu Dhabi, 127788, UAE

    N. G. Hallfors, M. Alhawari, M. Abi Jaoude, Y. Kifle, H. Saleh, K. Liao & A. F. Isakovic

  2. Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, 48202, USA

    M. Ismail

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  1. N. G. Hallfors
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  2. M. Alhawari
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  3. M. Abi Jaoude
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  4. Y. Kifle
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  5. H. Saleh
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  6. K. Liao
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  7. M. Ismail
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  8. A. F. Isakovic
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Correspondence to A. F. Isakovic.

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Hallfors, N.G., Alhawari, M., Abi Jaoude, M. et al. Graphene oxide: Nylon ECG sensors for wearable IoT healthcare—nanomaterial and SoC interface. Analog Integr Circ Sig Process 96, 253–260 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10470-018-1116-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10470-018-1116-6

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