Thermal Transfer Printed Flexible and Wearable Bionic Skin with Bilayer Nanofiber for Comfortable Multimodal Health Management

Xinshuo Liang, Shuo Meng, Chuanwei Zhi, Shuai Zhang, Renjie Tan, Xingyuan Xu, Kaisong Huang, Leqi Lei, Jinlian Hu*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Journal Publications and ReviewsRGC 21 - Publication in refereed journalpeer-review

1 Citation (Scopus)

Abstract

The advent of bionic skin sensors represents a significant leap forward in the realm of wearable health monitoring technologies. Existing bionic skin technologies face several limitations, including complex and expensive manufacturing processes, low wearing comfort, and challenges in achieving comfortable real-time health monitoring. These shortcomings hinder the widespread adoption and practical utility of bionic skin in various applications. The bionic skin invention presented in this article addresses these issues by introducing a novel thermal transfer manufacturing process that is low-cost and easy to operate. This method is particularly suitable for the small-scale mass production required for bionic skin applications. Additionally, the innovative bilayer unidirectional moisture transport nanomembrane incorporated into the bionic skin offers high extensibility and breathability. This feature enhances the ability of the skin to absorb sweat, thereby facilitating comfortable real-time health monitoring. The specially designed bionic skin sensor embedded within this system can monitor various biomarkers in sweat, including glucose, lactic acid, uric acid, pH, temperature, and skin impedance. When combined with the CARE(Continuous Analyte Monitoring with Real-time Engagement) system, it enables real-time data transmission and processing, offering a comprehensive approach to health monitoring that is both comfortable and reliable. © 2024 Wiley-VCH GmbH.
Original languageEnglish
Article number2403780
JournalAdvanced Healthcare Materials
Volume14
Issue number6
Online published23 Dec 2024
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 3 Mar 2025

Funding

The authors gratefully acknowledge the financial support from the Startup Grant of CityU (“Laboratory of Wearable Materials for Healthcare,” Grant no. 9380116), the National Natural Science Foundation of China “Study of high-performance fiber to be achieved by mimicking the hierarchical structure of spider-silk,” Grant no. 52073241; the Collaborative Research Fund with the title of “Fundamental Study toward Real Spider Dragline Silk Performance through Artificial Innovative Approach”, project no. 8730080; “Study of Multi-Responsive Shape Memory Polyurethane Nanocomposites Inspired by Natural Fibers,” Grant no. 51673162; “Developing Spider-Silk-Model Artificial Fibers by A Chemical Synthetic Approach,” Grant no. 15201719), and the Contract Research (“Development of Breathable Fabrics with Nano-Electrospun Membrane,” CityU ref: 9231419).

Research Keywords

  • bionic skin sweat sensor
  • continuous health monitoring
  • electrospinning
  • multifunctional sensing
  • thermal transfer

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