tattoo electronics

a system developed by researchers lets sensors and communications electronics be worn on the skin as a temporary tattoo

in a device platform that spans communications, human-machine interfaces and gaming, and medical diagnostics, ultrathin electronics can be worn as simply and unobtrusively as a temporary tattoo with the system developed by a research team led by todd coleman and john rogers of the university of illinois at urbana-champaign and yonggang huang of northwestern university. sensors and communication electronics are embedded into flexible transparent sheets that stick to skin. the unobtrusive quality of the device opens the potential for a host of measurements and control systems that could offer more accurate day-to-day data than laboratory figures (when patients are in unnatural conditions), while the use of other kinds of electronic modules permits covert communications and physiological-directed gaming.

the tested electronics feature electrophysiological and physical sensors as well as wireless communication modules. recordings for EEG, EKG/ECG, and EMG sensors (measuring electrical activity in the brain, heart, and skeletal muscles respectively) were comparable to data obtained via bulky commercial devices.

the team also demonstrated the system’s potential for use in human-machine interfaces of other kinds. when mounted to a user’s throat, simple spoken commands can be translated into electrical controls– here, for example, the device wirelessly controlled movement in the video game sokoban in response to a user’s vocalization of the commands ‘up’, ‘down’, ‘left’, and ‘right’.

closer view of the system

the challenge of the project was overcoming the rigidity of electronic systems, which the team accomplished by fabricating the circuitry as snakelike nanoribbons of wires mounted onto a lightweight, stretchable membrane. with this geometry, called ‘filamentary serpentine’ by the research team, the wires can bend, twist, and stretch while maintaining functionality.

the device adheres to the stick via the electrostatic phenomenon of van der waals force, requiring neither tape nor glue nor bulky wires, and thus easily removable.

coleman notes: ‘if we want to understand brain function in a natural environment, that’s completely incompatible with EEG studies in a laboratory. the best way to do this is to record neural signals in natural settings, with devices that are invisible to the user.‘

the ‘filamentary serpentine’ fabrication system makes the circuitry flexible both on and off the skin

adhering to the skin via van der waals electrostatic force, the device requires no glue, tape, gels, or bulky wiring

the test depicted her demonstrates that the system can be used without interference coupled with actual temporary tattoos, an invaluable opportunity for medical diagnostics in children