Chronic wounds affect millions of patients around the world and their treatment is challenging as the early signs indicating their development are subtle. In addition, a type of chronic wound, known as pressure ulcer, develops in patients with limited mobility. Infection and frequent bleeding are indicators of chronic wound development. In this article, we present an unprecedented low cost continuous wireless monitoring system, realized through inkjet printing on a standard bandage, which can send early warnings for the parameters like irregular bleeding, variations in pH levels and external pressure at wound site. In addition to the early warnings, this smart bandage concept can provide long term wound progression data to the health care providers. The smart bandage comprises a disposable part which has the inkjet printed sensors and a reusable part constituting the wireless electronics. This work is an important step towards futuristic wearable sensors for remote health care applications.
Large area environmental monitoring can play a crucial role in dealing with crisis situations. However, it is challenging as implementing a fixed sensor network infrastructure over large remote area is economically unfeasible. This work proposes disposable, compact, dispersible 3D‐printed wireless sensor nodes with integrated microelectronics which can be dispersed in the environment and work in conjunction with few fixed nodes for large area monitoring applications. As a proof of concept, the wireless sensing of temperature, humidity, and H2S levels are shown which are important for two critical environmental conditions namely forest fires and industrial leaks. These inkjet‐printed sensors and an antenna are realized on the walls of a 3D‐printed cubic package which encloses the microelectronics developed on a 3D‐printed circuit board. Hence, 3D printing and inkjet printing are uniquely combined in order to realize a low‐cost, fully integrated wireless sensor node.
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