ELECTRODE SENSOR AND USE OF ELECTRODE SENSOR AS EIT ELECTRODE

• US 20130116532A1
• Filed: 07/14/2011
• Published: 05/09/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 07/16/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Swisscom AG (Government of Switzerland)
• Original Assignee: Swisscom AG (Government of Switzerland)
• Inventors: Brunner, Josef X., Gaggero, Pascal
• Granted Patent: US 10,092,211 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 600/390
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2562/046 in a matrix array
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2562/164 the sensor is mounted in or on a conformable substrate or carrier
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0536 Impedance imaging, e.g. by tomography
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/282 Holders for multiple electrodes for introduction into the body A61B5/287
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/6804 Garments; Clothes
• CPC Class Codes: H01R 43/16 for manufacturing contact members, e.g. by punching and by bending
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49204 Contact or terminal manufacturing

Abstract

Electrode sensor comprising an array of spaced apart individual contact elements (27′, 41), and an interface structure (30, 35) for forming contact between said contact elements and the skin; said interface structure comprising an interface layer of an essentially electrically insulating or poorly electrically conducting material (20′, 29, 37) defining a skin (31) contact surface on one side and an array contact surface on the other side of the interface layer, a first pattern of an electrically conducting material on the array contact surface, a second pattern of an electrically conducting material on the skin contact surface, and electrical pathways (21′, 39) connecting the first pattern with the second pattern; whereas, the first pattern comprises pattern elements, each individual contact element (27′, 41) comprises a contacting surface area large enough to cover several pattern elements of said first pattern when contacting the array contact surface of the interface structure, and by contacting distinct sections of the first pattern with said individual contact elements, groups of electrical pathways establish contact further with distinct sections of the second pattern, so that an individual contact element (27′, 41) defines an individual effective electrode on the skin contact surface. Method of manufacturing said electrode sensor, comprising the steps of: providing said interface structure, creating a first pattern of an electrically conducting material on its array contact surface, a second pattern of an electrically conducting material on its skin contact surface, electrically conducting pathways connecting the first pattern with the second pattern, and contacting sections of the electrically conducting first pattern with an array of spaced apart contact elements.

Claims

1-36. -36. (canceled)

37. An electrode sensor for electrical impedance tomography, comprising:

an array of spaced apart individual contact elements;

an interface structure configured for forming contact between the array of contact elements and skin of a patient, the interface structure comprising an interface layer comprised of an essentially electrically insulating or poorly electrically conducting material defining a skin contact surface on one side and an array contact surface on the other side of the interface layer;

a first pattern of an electrically conducting material on the array contact surface, the first pattern comprising a first plurality of mutually electrically isolated pattern elements;

a second pattern of an electrically conducting material on the skin contact surface, the second pattern comprising a second plurality of mutually electrically isolated pattern elements; and

a plurality of electrical pathways connecting the first pattern with the second pattern, the electrical pathways being mutually electrically isolated;

wherein each individual contact element comprises a contacting surface area large enough to cover a plurality of the first plurality of pattern elements when contacting the array contact surface of the interface structure, and

wherein by contacting distinct sections of the first pattern with the individual contact elements, groups of the plurality of the electrical pathways establish further contact with distinct sections of the second pattern, so that an individual contact element defines an individual effective electrode on the skin contact surface.

38. The electrode sensor of claim 37, wherein each of the first and second patterns comprises pattern elements in the form of at least one of dots, lines, spots and patches.

39. The electrode sensor of claim 37, wherein the array of spaced apart individual contact elements is detachably fixable to the array contact surface.

40. The electrode sensor of claim 37, wherein the plurality of electrical pathways connects a plurality of the first and second pattern elements that are substantially positioned in a face-to-face arrangement with each other on opposite sides of the interface layer.

41. The electrode sensor of claim 37, wherein the first pattern, the second pattern and the plurality of electrical pathways are configured such that, by contacting the interface structure with one of the individual contact elements, an actual area of contact on the array contact surface essentially defines the area of an effective individual electrode on the skin contact surface.

42. The electrode sensor of claim 37, wherein the electrically conducting first pattern is formed from at least one of a plurality of spaced apart electrically conducting spots and a plurality of spaced apart electrically conducting lines on the array contact surface, the at least one of a plurality of spaced apart electrically conducting spots and a plurality of spaced apart electrically conducting lines individually electrically connected by the plurality of electrical pathways to at least one of a plurality of distinct sections, spots and lines of the second pattern.

43. The electrode sensor of claim 37, wherein the electrically conducting second pattern is formed from at least one of a plurality of spaced apart electrically conducting spots and a plurality of spaced apart electrically conducting lines on the skin contact surface and wherein a plurality of at least one of a plurality of spaced apart electrically conducting spots and a plurality of spaced apart electrically conducting lines forms an individual effective electrode.

44. The electrode sensor of claim 37, wherein the first pattern is electrically connected with the second pattern of the skin contact surface by the plurality of electrically pathways extending around a lateral edge of at least one of the essentially electrically insulating or poorly electrically conducting material and a non-conducting core material.

45. The electrode sensor of claim 37, wherein the first pattern, the second pattern and the plurality of pathways are integral with the interface layer.

46. The electrode sensor of claim 37, wherein each of the individual contact elements are mounted to a support structure.

47. The electrode sensor of claim 46, wherein the support structure comprises a flexible belt-like structure.

48. The electrode sensor of claim 37, wherein the interface structure further comprises at least one of foam and woven, knitted, non-woven and spacer fabric.

49. The electrode sensor of claim 37, wherein the first pattern, the second pattern and the pathways comprise at least one of electrically conductive paint and electrically conductive particulate material.

50. The electrode sensor of claim 49, wherein the at least one of electrically conductive paint and electrically conductive particulate material is sputtered or printed.

51. The electrode sensor of claim 50, wherein the at least one of electrically conductive paint and electrically conductive particulate material is deposited by micro-printed.

52. The electrode sensor of claim 48, wherein the interface structure further comprises at least one of electrically conductive yarn, wire and fibers woven, knitted or stitched into the interface structure.

53. A method of manufacturing an electrode sensor for electrical impedance tomography, comprising:

providing an array of spaced apart individual contact elements;

providing an interface structure for forming contact between the array of contact elements and skin of a patient;

providing an interface structure comprising an interface layer of an essentially electrically insulating or poorly electrically conducting material defining a skin contact surface on one side and an array contact surface on the other side of the interface layer;

creating a first pattern of an electrically conducting material on the array contact surface, the first pattern comprising mutually electrically isolated pattern elements;

creating a second pattern of an electrically conducting material on the skin contact surface, the second pattern comprising mutually electrically isolated pattern elements;

creating mutually electrically isolated and electrically conducting pathways connecting the first pattern with the second pattern; and

contacting sections of the first pattern with the array of spaced apart individual contact elements, each individual contact element comprising a contacting surface area large enough to cover a plurality of pattern elements of the first pattern.

54. The method of claim 53, further comprising manufacturing the first pattern, the second pattern and the pathways by providing or inserting spots or lines of electrically conducting material in the interface structure that penetrate the interface layer from the skin contact surface to the array contact surface.

55. The method of claim 53, further comprising extending the pathways around a lateral edge of the essentially electrically insulating or poorly electrically conducting material, and forming the lateral edge as a lateral bend by folding the essentially electrically insulating or poorly electrically conducting material.

56. The method of claim 53, further comprising extending the pathways substantially orthogonally from the array contact surface to the skin contact surface of the interface layer.

57. A method of using an electrode sensor, comprising:

obtaining an electrode sensor comprising; and

an array of spaced apart individual contact elements;

an interface structure configured for forming contact between the array of contact elements and skin of a patient, the interface structure comprising an interface layer comprised of an essentially electrically insulating or poorly electrically conducting material defining a skin contact surface on one side and an array contact surface on the other side of the interface layer;

a first pattern of an electrically conducting material on the array contact surface, the first pattern comprising a first plurality of mutually electrically isolated pattern elements;

a second pattern of an electrically conducting material on the skin contact surface, the second pattern comprising a second plurality of mutually electrically isolated pattern elements; and

a plurality of electrical pathways connecting the first pattern with the second pattern, the electrical pathways being mutually electrically isolated;

wherein each individual contact element comprises a contacting surface area large enough to cover a plurality of the first plurality of pattern elements when contacting the array contact surface of the interface structure, and

wherein by contacting distinct sections of the first pattern with the individual contact elements, groups of the plurality of the electrical pathways establish further contact with distinct sections of the second pattern, so that an individual contact element defines an individual effective electrode on the skin contact surface;

using the electrode sensor for one of medical monitoring and measuring an electrical field on a living being.