Monitoring Symptoms of Infectious Diseases: Perspectives for Printed Wearable Sensors

Editorial for the Special Issue on Recent Advances in Inkjet Technology

Inkjet is a well-established technology that has been applied in various applications ranging from graphical printing to functional material printing [...].

From Piezoelectric Nanogenerator to Non-Invasive Medical Sensor: A Review

Piezoelectric nanogenerators (PENGs) not only are able to harvest mechanical energy from the ambient environment or body and convert mechanical signals into electricity but can also inform us about pathophysiological changes and communicate this information using electrical signals, thus acting as medical sensors to provide personalized medical solutions to patients. In this review, we aim to present the latest advances in PENG-based non-invasive sensors for clinical diagnosis and medical treatment. While we begin with the basic principles of PENGs and their applications in energy harvesting, this review focuses on the medical sensing applications of PENGs, including detection mechanisms, material selection, and adaptive design, which are oriented toward disease diagnosis. Considering the non-invasive in vitro application scenario, discussions about the individualized designs that are intended to balance a high performance, durability, comfortability, and skin-friendliness are mainly divided into two types: mechanical sensors and biosensors, according to the key role of piezoelectric effects in disease diagnosis. The shortcomings, challenges, and possible corresponding solutions of PENG-based medical sensing devices are also highlighted, promoting the development of robust, reliable, scalable, and cost-effective medical systems that are helpful for the public.

Toward Sustainable Wearable Electronic Textiles

Smart wearable electronic textiles (e-textiles) that can detect and differentiate multiple stimuli, while also collecting and storing the diverse array of data signals using highly innovative, multifunctional, and intelligent garments, are of great value for personalized healthcare applications. However, material performance and sustainability, complicated and difficult e-textile fabrication methods, and their limited end-of-life processability are major challenges to wide adoption of e-textiles. In this review, we explore the potential for sustainable materials, manufacturing techniques, and their end-of-the-life processes for developing eco-friendly e-textiles. In addition, we survey the current state-of-the-art for sustainable fibers and electronic materials (i.e., conductors, semiconductors, and dielectrics) to serve as different components in wearable e-textiles and then provide an overview of environmentally friendly digital manufacturing techniques for such textiles which involve less or no water utilization, combined with a reduction in both material waste and energy consumption. Furthermore, standardized parameters for evaluating the sustainability of e-textiles are established, such as life cycle analysis, biodegradability, and recyclability. Finally, we discuss the current development trends, as well as the future research directions for wearable e-textiles which include an integrated product design approach based on the use of eco-friendly materials, the development of sustainable manufacturing processes, and an effective end-of-the-life strategy to manufacture next generation smart and sustainable wearable e-textiles that can be either recycled to value-added products or decomposed in the landfill without any negative environmental impacts.

Cuffless Blood Pressure Monitoring: Academic Insights and Perspectives Analysis

In recent decades, cuffless blood pressure monitoring technology has been a point of research in the field of health monitoring and public media. Based on the web of science database, this paper evaluated the publications in the field from 1990 to 2020 using bibliometric analysis, described the developments in recent years, and presented future research prospects in the field. Through the comparative analysis of keywords, citations, H-index, journals, research institutions, national authors and reviews, this paper identified research hotspots and future research trends in the field of cuffless blood pressure monitoring. From the results of the bibliometric analysis, innovative methods such as machine learning technologies related to pulse transmit time and pulse wave analysis have been widely applied in blood pressure monitoring. The 2091 articles related to cuffless blood pressure monitoring technology were published in 1131 journals. In the future, improving the accuracy of monitoring to meet the international medical blood pressure standards, and achieving portability and miniaturization will remain the development goals of cuffless blood pressure measurement technology. The application of flexible electronics and machine learning strategy in the field will be two major development directions to guide the practical applications of cuffless blood pressure monitoring technology.