Professor Terry Tao Ye - Passive Sensing and Battery-less Devices for e-Textile Applications

IAS Visiting Fellow Professor Terry Tao Ye delivers a seminar on their research - eTextile have been an active research focus in wearable electronics, where fabric-based sensors and devices are interconnected into Body Area Networks (BANs) to enable multi-dimensional, long-term, and real-time monitoring for athlete training, rehabilitation, and patient care applications. With numerous eTextile devices integrated into BANs, energy sourcing and data transmission have emerged as major challenges. Passive sensing techniques and battery-less embedded devices offer ideal solutions to these issues. By utilizing backscatter modulation or mutual electromagnetic (EM) coupling methods, sensing information can be efficiently extracted and transmitted. Additionally, by harvesting energy directly from incoming EM waves, eTextile devices can function as therapeutic apparatuses without the need for bulky solid-state batteries. In this presentation, we will demonstrate the potential of eTextile devices constructed from conductive fibers and specially embroidered structures. By integrating these fabric-based components with NFC and RFID transponder chips, passive sensing and battery-less embedded devices can be seamlessly incorporated into fabrics to perform various functions, including body movement sensing, vital sign monitoring, antenna and energy harvesting, and electronic bandages for wound therapy. This research offers a novel platform and enhanced user experience for patient care through smart clothing, as well as athlete training and human-machine interaction applications. For more information about the IAS, please visit - https://www.lboro.ac.uk/research/ias