Development and Evaluation of a Stretchable Capacitive Sensor for Monitoring Knee Joint Movements

Article

Levestam, Samuel, Zhu, Yuting, Teo, Mei Ying, Kandasamy, Sivakumar and Aw, Kean. 2023. "Development and Evaluation of a Stretchable Capacitive Sensor for Monitoring Knee Joint Movements." International Journal of Biomechatronics and Biomedical Robotics. https://doi.org/10.1504/IJBBR.2023.10062085
Article Title

Development and Evaluation of a Stretchable Capacitive Sensor for Monitoring Knee Joint Movements

ERA Journal ID123684
Article CategoryArticle
AuthorsLevestam, Samuel, Zhu, Yuting, Teo, Mei Ying, Kandasamy, Sivakumar and Aw, Kean
Journal TitleInternational Journal of Biomechatronics and Biomedical Robotics
Number of Pages8
Year2023
PublisherInderscience Publishers
Place of PublicationSwitzerland
ISSN1757-6792
1757-6806
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)https://doi.org/10.1504/IJBBR.2023.10062085
Web Address (URL)https://www.inderscience.com/info/ingeneral/forthcoming.php?jcode=ijbbr
Abstract

This preliminary study explores using a soft, stretchable sensor made from carbon-black/elastomer-composite. This stretchable capacitive sensor is integrated into a wearable knee brace with the aim of monitoring joint health for physiotherapy and rehabilitative purposes. The sensor can potentially anticipate postoperative knee joint or stroke rehabilitation by tracking knee movements during activities such as walking. The anticipated outcome is to provide physiotherapists with valuable insights to support patients in their rehabilitation routines. Initial findings indicate that the sensors offer a reasonably accurate assessment of joint mobility. Furthermore, they present a lightweight and comfortable alternative for joint motion monitoring, in contrast to prevalent traditional hardware. The outcomes were validated through correlation with a motion capture system and demonstrated the potential of using a soft wearable sensor to determine knee motion.

Keywordscapacitive sensor; stretchable sensor; joint motion monitoring; wearable knee brace
Contains Sensitive ContentDoes not contain sensitive content
ANZSRC Field of Research 2020400305. Biomedical instrumentation
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Byline AffiliationsSchool of Engineering
Centre for Health Research
Centre for Future Materials
University of Auckland, New Zealand
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