Strain-Insensitive Elastic Surface Electromyographic (sEMG) Electrode for Efficient Recognition of Exercise Intensities

Daxiu Tang; Zhe Yu; Yong He; Waqas Asghar; Ya-Nan Zheng; Fali Li; Changcheng Shi; Roozbeh Zarei; Yiwei Liu; Jie Shang; Xiang Liu; Run-Wei Li

doi:10.3390/mi11030239

Micromachines (Feb 2020)

Strain-Insensitive Elastic Surface Electromyographic (sEMG) Electrode for Efficient Recognition of Exercise Intensities

Daxiu Tang,
Zhe Yu,
Yong He,
Waqas Asghar,
Ya-Nan Zheng,
Fali Li,
Changcheng Shi,
Roozbeh Zarei,
Yiwei Liu,
Jie Shang,
Xiang Liu,
Run-Wei Li

Affiliations

Daxiu Tang: Faculty of Materials Science and Engineering, Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming 650093, China
Zhe Yu: CAS Key Laboratory of Magnetic Materials and Devices, Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ningbo 315201, China
Yong He: CAS Key Laboratory of Magnetic Materials and Devices, Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ningbo 315201, China
Waqas Asghar: CAS Key Laboratory of Magnetic Materials and Devices, Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ningbo 315201, China
Ya-Nan Zheng: CAS Key Laboratory of Magnetic Materials and Devices, Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ningbo 315201, China
Fali Li: CAS Key Laboratory of Magnetic Materials and Devices, Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ningbo 315201, China
Changcheng Shi: CAS Key Laboratory of Magnetic Materials and Devices, Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ningbo 315201, China
Roozbeh Zarei: CAS Key Laboratory of Magnetic Materials and Devices, Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ningbo 315201, China
Yiwei Liu: CAS Key Laboratory of Magnetic Materials and Devices, Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ningbo 315201, China
Jie Shang: CAS Key Laboratory of Magnetic Materials and Devices, Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ningbo 315201, China
Xiang Liu: Faculty of Materials Science and Engineering, Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming 650093, China
Run-Wei Li: CAS Key Laboratory of Magnetic Materials and Devices, Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ningbo 315201, China

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/mi11030239
Journal volume & issue: Vol. 11, no. 3
p. 239

Abstract

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Surface electromyography (sEMG) sensors are widely used in the fields of ergonomics, sports science, and medical research. However, current sEMG sensors cannot recognize the various exercise intensities efficiently because of the strain interference, low conductivity, and poor skin-conformability of their electrodes. Here, we present a highly conductive, strain-insensitive, and low electrode−skin impedance elastic sEMG electrode, which consists of a three-layered structure (polydimethylsiloxane/galinstan + polydimethylsiloxane/silver-coated nickel + polydimethylsiloxane). The bottom layer of the electrode consists of vertically conductive magnetic particle paths, which are insensitive to stretching strain, collect sEMG charge from human skin, and finally transfer it to processing circuits via an intermediate layer. Our skin-friendly electrode exhibits high conductivity (0.237 and 1.635 mΩ·cm resistivities in transverse and longitudinal directions, respectively), low electrode−skin impedance (47.23 kΩ at 150 Hz), excellent strain-insensitivity (10% change of electrode−skin impedance within the 0−25% strain range), high fatigue resistance (>1500 cycles), and good conformability with skin. During various exercise intensities, the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of our electrode increased by 22.53 dB, which is 206% and 330% more than that of traditional Ag/AgCl and copper electrode, respectively. The ability of our electrode to efficiently recognize various exercise intensities confirms its great application potential for the field of sports health.

Published in Micromachines

ISSN: 2072-666X (Online)
Publisher: MDPI AG
Country of publisher: Switzerland
LCC subjects: Technology: Mechanical engineering and machinery
Website: https://www.mdpi.com/journal/micromachines

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