Printed Tattoo Electrodes for Electrophysiological Signal Acquisition

The enhancement of medical tattoo electrodes over the past few decades have enabled them to serve as an alternative to conventional Ag/AgCl electrodes. Additive manufacturing methods can enable efficient and flexible fabrication of the tattoo electrodes, in contrast to the traditional fabrication methods demonstrated thus far. The objective of this project is to optimize printing methods to fabricate medical tattoo electrodes, as well as analyze and compare their performance both in vitro and in vivo to Ag/AgCl electrodes. Inkjet and extrusion printing methods were optimized to print various electrode patterns on a tattoo paper substrate and a simple contact platform was developed to allow for external connections to rigid components. Initial testing and analysis of the electrical and mechanical performance of the electrodes outside the human body was subsequently performed. The electrodes were ultimately tested on human subjects to acquire ECG and EMG signals, which were analyzed in terms of signal quality.