Robust and scalable three-dimensional spacer textile pressure sensor for human motion detection

Abstract

There is a growing demand for wearable sensing devices to perceive and respond to vital biological signals or human activities. In this work, a carbon nanotube ink drop-coated textile resistive pressure sensor on a typical three-dimensional (3D) spacer textile was developed to detect human health and motion through scalable, cost-effective, and simple processing. A 3D spacer textile comprises two outer layers interconnected with a monofilament spacer with robust compression resistance and high air circulation with open-hole structures, which demonstrates the potential for use in a wearable pressure sensing device. The textile pressure sensor unit shows a wide range of sensing performance of 200 Pa-50 kPa, which facilitates the detection of physiological signal acoustic vibrations and hand motion, and it exhibits stable cycling performances up to 10 000 cycles, along with a fast response time of 20 ms. Furthermore, large-area sensor arrays are successfully demonstrated for the spatial distribution of pressure mapping, suggesting significant potential in smart textiles or wearable electronics.