A comparative analysis of printing techniques by using an active concentric ring electrode for bioelectrical recording

Purpose This paper aims to present a comparison between three types of manufacturing techniques, namely, screen-printed, inkjet and gravure, using different types of inks, for the implementation of concentric ring electrodes which permit estimation of Laplacian potential on the body surface. Design/methodology/approach Flexible concentric ring electrodes not only present lower skin electrode contact impedance and lower baseline wander than rigid electrodes but are also less sensitive to interference and motion artefacts. The above three techniques allow printing of conductive inks on flexible substrates, and with this work, the authors aim to study which is the best technique and ink to obtain the best electrode response. Findings From the results obtained regarding ink thickness, resistivity, electrode resistance and other performance parameters derived from electrocardiographic signal recording tests, it can be said that concentric electrodes using the screen-printing and inkjet techniques are suitable for non-invasive bioelectric signal acquisition. Originality/value The development of new types of inks and substrates for the electronics industry and the adaptation of new manufacturing techniques allow for an improvement in the development of electrodes and sensors. This work was financially supported by the Spanish Government and European FEDER funds (MAT2012-38429-C04-04). García Breijo, E.; Prats Boluda, G.; Lidon-Roger, JV.; Ye Lin, Y.; Garcia Casado, FJ. (2015). A comparative analysis of printing techniques by using an active concentric ring electrode for bioelectrical recording. Microelectronics International. 32(2):103-107. https://doi.org/10.1108/MI-03-2015-0021 Besio, W., Aakula, R., Koka, K., & Dai, W. (2006). Development of a Tri-polar Concentric Ring Electrode for Acquiring Accurate Laplacian Body Surface Potentials. Annals of Biomedical Engineering, 34(3), 426-435. doi:10.1007/s10439-005-9054-8 Besio, W., & Chen, T. (2007). Tripolar Laplacian electrocardiogram and moment of activation isochronal mapping. Physiological Measurement, 28(5), 515-529. doi:10.1088/0967-3334/28/5/006 He, B., & Cohen, R. J. (1992). Body surface Laplacian mapping of cardiac electrical activity. The American Journal of Cardiology, 70(20), 1617-1620. doi:10.1016/0002-9149(92)90471-a Lu, C.C. and Tarjan, P.P. (2002), “An ultra-high common-mode rejection ratio (CMRR) AC instrumentation amplifier for laplacian electrocardiographic measurement”,Biomedical Instrumentation