Design and Integration of an Elastic Sensor Sheet for Pressure Ulcer Prediction: Materials, Methods, and Network Connections †
by
,
Mohammad Mohammad Amini
1,*, 
Davood Fanaei Sheikholeslami
1,
Rogério Dionísio
2
,
Ahmadreza Heravi
1 and
Mahdi Faghihi
1 1
Sensomatt Lda, 6000-767 Castelo Branco, Portugal
2
DISAC R&D Unit, Instituto Politécnico de Castelo Branco, 6000-767 Castelo Branco, Portugal
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
†
Presented at the XXXV EUROSENSORS Conference, Lecce, Italy, 10–13 September 2023.
Proceedings 2024, 97(1), 215; https://doi.org/10.3390/proceedings2024097215
Published: 14 May 2024
Abstract
:This paper discusses the design and integration of an elastic sensor sheet for SENSOMATT, a smart device that predicts pressure ulcers caused by prolonged skin pressure. It covers the mechanical and electrical aspects of the sensor sheet design, including material selection, mould and tooling design, and network design. The paper describes testing of different configurations of the sensor sheet and various network structures. The final design of the sensor sheet is successfully constructed and tested, and the article provides a brief introduction to the printed circuit board design and manufacturing process.
1. Introduction
SENSOMATT has a product that predicts pressure ulcers caused by prolonged skin pressure. The focus of the paper is on the design and integration of the elastic sensor sheet, which senses pressure changes and relays information to the master board for processing. The report covers mechanical and electrical aspects of the sensor sheet design, material selection, mould and tooling design, network design, and a brief introduction to printed circuit board (PCB) design and manufacturing process [1].
2. Materials and Methods
The development of the elastic sensor sheet involved careful study and testing of different pressure sensors, rubber materials, and network structures. The team used a rubber sheet as the base for the elastic sensor sheet, which had a 4 × 10 arrangement of 40 sensors connected to each other, as shown in Figure 1a, and they tested different configurations to determine the optimal size and arrangement. The electrical design and integration of the elastic sensor sheet included different types of networks and electrical structures, with an I2C network ultimately implemented. The article provides a detailed overview of the design and integration of the elastic sensor sheet for SENSOMATT, useful for those interested in developing similar smart devices [2].
3. Discussion
The article provides an extensive discussion on the design and integration of the elastic sensor sheet for the SENSOMATT product. The paper covers mechanical and electrical aspects of the sensor sheet design, including material selection, mould design, tooling design, and network design [3]. The article also provides a brief introduction to the PCB design (see Figure 1b) and manufacturing process, which is crucial for ensuring accuracy and preventing short circuits or incomplete circuits. The article offers different designs of sensor sheets and their network connections and describes the final network design, a custom-designed serial network compatible with the final sensor cell module. The paper is an essential guide for those interested in the development and integration of smart devices for predicting pressure ulcers [4].
4. Patents
The sensor cells being used in this research are registered in Portugal National Patent with no. 117507 and they are under PCT protection for international registration until with no. PCT/IB2022/059658.
Supplementary Materials
The following supporting information can be downloaded at https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Tkc0G6kyAzXbgnPAj7Au9uG-KOSClbY6/view?usp=sharing, Pressure sensors datasheets, Processor and processing units’ datasheets, IC and micro controllers data sheet and architecture.
Author Contributions
Conceptualization, M.M.A. and D.F.S.; methodology, M.M.A.; software, A.H.; validation, R.D., M.M.A. and A.H.; formal analysis, M.M.A.; investigation, R.D. and M.F.; resources, D.F.S.; review and editing, R.D.; visualization, M.F.; project administration, M.M.A. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.
Funding
This work was carried out under the SensoMatt project, grant agreement no. CENTRO-01-0247-FEDER-070107, co-financed by European Funds (FEDER) by CENTRO2020.
Institutional Review Board Statement
The study was conducted in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki, and approved by the Ethics Committee of the Polytechnic Institute of Castelo Branco (protocol code 36 CE-IPCB/2021).
Informed Consent Statement
Informed consent was obtained from all subjects involved in the study.
Data Availability Statement
The data presented in this study are openly available in GitHub: https://github.com/rdionisio1403/PoPu/ accessed on 1 July 2023.
Conflicts of Interest
The authors declare no conflicts of interest.
References
- Zazoum, B.; Batoo, K.M.; Khan, M.A.A. Recent Advances in Flexible Sensors and Their Applications. Sensors 2022, 22, 4653. [Google Scholar] [CrossRef] [PubMed]
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Figure 1.
(a) Flexible sensor sheet with 40 × 10 sensors arrangement. (b) Master board PCB design to receive and analyze signal data.
Figure 1.
(a) Flexible sensor sheet with 40 × 10 sensors arrangement. (b) Master board PCB design to receive and analyze signal data.
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MDPI and ACS Style
Amini, M.M.; Sheikholeslami, D.F.; Dionísio, R.; Heravi, A.; Faghihi, M. Design and Integration of an Elastic Sensor Sheet for Pressure Ulcer Prediction: Materials, Methods, and Network Connections. Proceedings 2024, 97, 215. https://doi.org/10.3390/proceedings2024097215
AMA Style
Amini MM, Sheikholeslami DF, Dionísio R, Heravi A, Faghihi M. Design and Integration of an Elastic Sensor Sheet for Pressure Ulcer Prediction: Materials, Methods, and Network Connections. Proceedings. 2024; 97(1):215. https://doi.org/10.3390/proceedings2024097215
Chicago/Turabian StyleAmini, Mohammad Mohammad, Davood Fanaei Sheikholeslami, Rogério Dionísio, Ahmadreza Heravi, and Mahdi Faghihi. 2024. "Design and Integration of an Elastic Sensor Sheet for Pressure Ulcer Prediction: Materials, Methods, and Network Connections" Proceedings 97, no. 1: 215. https://doi.org/10.3390/proceedings2024097215
