Startup looks to revolutionize health monitoring

Electrodes are often attached to a patient’s chest to conduct an electrocardiogram, but conventional electrodes have a number of disadvantages: hard, metallic electrodes are uncomfortable to wear and are not suitable for taking measurements over longer periods, while gel electrodes are known to cause allergic reactions in patients.

Researchers at ETH Zurich have now developed a new type of electrode that can overcome these problems. It is as elastic as skin and made out of a non-irritant mixture of silicon rubber and conductive silver particles.

The researchers were inspired by grasshoppers when designing the electrode’s surface structure. The soles of these insects’ feet are covered with countless tiny pads, which look like mushroom heads under a microscope and are arranged like a mosaic, writes ETH Zurich in a statement. When they come into contact with another surface, an adhesive effect occurs that allows them to walk even on vertical surfaces.

The researchers applied this microstructure to their material to create an electrode surface that adheres to the skin. Tests on a swimmer revealed impressive results such that Zurich’s lake rescue service is now using them as part of a study.

Besides electrodes for recording cardiac output curves (electrocardiograms or ECG), the researchers have also developed an electrode for measuring brain signals, known as electroencephalography (EEG). Thanks to a special technology with nubs, these can be attached to the scalp even through thick hair, making shaving and gel unnecessary.

IDUN Technologies, an ETH spin-off founded in November 2017, now wants to turn the electrodes into a marketable product as early as this year. Their first step is to settle the question of strategic orientation.

“We see potential in the long-term monitoring of patients, in sports performance monitoring and in the EEG market,” said Simon Bachmann, co-founder of IDUN Technologies.