Ballistocardiogram Sensor Serpentine Connection Vibration Isolation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing ballistocardiogram sensors are limited in accurately measuring cardiac activity due to vulnerability to movement and noise, requiring stable patient posture and resulting in unreliable information with low reliability and difficulty in real-time monitoring.
Innovation Solution
A patch-type ballistocardiogram sensor with a serpentine-shaped connection part and bump patterns on a polyimide substrate, amplifying weak heart vibrations by concentrating external forces vertically onto a PVDF-TrFE piezoelectric sensing layer, allowing for continuous, non-restraint monitoring and simultaneous measurement with electrocardiogram signals.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a conventional ballistocardiogram sensor is used, then the sensor can measure vibration generated by heart activity, but the sensor is vulnerable to movement and noise, resulting in low measurement reliability
Solution Approach 1:
The sensor is divided into distinct functional regions: a support part for stability, connection parts with serpentine shapes for flexible coupling, and a vertical movement part for vibration detection. This segmentation allows each region to address specific challenges, with the connection parts specifically designed to isolate the sensing area from movement artifacts.
Solution Approach 2:
The connection parts are designed with serpentine shapes that convert horizontal movements into vertical components, allowing the sensor to focus on vertical vibrations from heart activity while rejecting horizontal movement artifacts. This dimensional transformation enhances measurement reliability by separating relevant signals from harmful noise.
2Measurement precision
If the sensor structure is simplified, then the manufacturing process is easier, but the sensor cannot accurately amplify weak cardiac vibrations
Solution Approach 1:
The connection parts feature serpentine (curved) shapes rather than straight configurations. This curvature allows the connection parts to flex and amplify vertical vibrations while maintaining a relatively simple overall structure. The curved geometry concentrates external forces vertically onto the piezoelectric sensing layer, enhancing measurement precision without requiring complex additional components.
Solution Approach 2:
The sensor utilizes changes in the physical state of the piezoelectric material under mechanical stress. The vertical movement part and connection parts are designed to convert mechanical vibrations into electrical signals through piezoelectric effect, enabling accurate detection of weak cardiac vibrations with a relatively simple structural design.
3Ease of operation
If the sensor requires stable patient posture for accurate measurement, then measurement precision improves, but continuous monitoring becomes difficult due to restraint requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The connection parts are designed with flexible, serpentine structures that dynamically adapt to patient movement while maintaining vertical force transmission. This dynamic design allows the sensor to continue providing accurate measurements during natural patient movement, eliminating the need for strict posture restraint and enabling continuous monitoring.
Solution Approach 2:
The sensor converts the harmful effect of patient movement into a beneficial feature. The serpentine connection parts are designed to transform horizontal movement components into vertical signals that can be filtered out, allowing the sensor to maintain measurement precision even during patient movement, thus enabling unrestricted continuous monitoring.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The sensor effectively amplifies cardiac vibrations, enabling reliable and continuous monitoring of cardiac activity with improved accuracy and reduced noise interference, allowing for precise detection of minute heart beat changes and pressure variations.
Implementation Method 1
a piezoelectric sensing layer on the lower electrode
Data Source
AI summary
A ballistocardiogram sensor according to an embodiment of the inventive concept includes a lower substrate including a support part, a plurality of connection parts, and a vertical movement part, a lower electrode on the lower substrate, a piezoelectric sensing layer on the lower electrode, and an upper electrode on the piezoelectric sensing layer. The vertical movement part is spaced apart from the support part with the connection parts therebetween. The connection parts connect the vertical movement part and the support part. The piezoelectric sensing layer vertically overlaps the vertical movement part. The connection parts may have a serpentine shape.