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Soft, body conformable electronics for thermoregulation enabled by kirigami

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摘要

在节约能源与保证生活质量的同时, 将热电设备 (TEDs) 应用于个性化的体温调节具有非常大的吸引力。直接贴附在皮肤上的热电设备能够显著降低因冷却整个环境而产生的能量浪费。然而, 在面对人体皮肤呈现的极端动态的几何形状和应变, 传统的热电设备无法贴合人体轮廓以达到最佳的体温调节效果。因此, 本文基于剪纸技术设计了一种具有出色的透气性、柔性和共形性的可穿戴式热电设备。数值分析和实验结果均表明, 本文开发的热电设备能够承受各种类型的大程度的机械变形, 且不会导致电路断裂。上述成果和所提出的简便方法不仅推动了可穿戴式热电设备的发展, 还为各种需要高度共形性的电子设备提供了创新机遇。

Abstract

The application of thermoelectric devices (TEDs) for personalized thermoregulation is attractive for saving energy while balancing the quality of life. TEDs that directly attach to human skin remarkably minimized the energy wasted for cooling the entire environment. However, facing the extreme dynamic geometry change and strain of human skin, conventional TEDs cannot align with the contour of our bodies for the best thermoregulation effect. Hence, we designed a kirigami-based wearable TED with excellent water vapor permeability, flexibility, and conformability. Numerical analysis and experimental results reveal that our product can withstand various types of large mechanical deformation without circuit rupture. The stated outcome and proposed facile approach not only reinforce the development of wearable TEDs but also offer an innovative opportunity for different electronics that require high conformability.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 62122002), the Project of City University of Hong Kong (Nos. 9667221, 9678274, and 9680322), as part of the InnoHK Project on Project 2.2—AI-based 3D ultrasound imaging algorithm at Hong Kong Centre for Cerebro-Cardiovascular Health Engineering (COCHE), and the Project of Research Grants Council of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (Nos. 11213721, 11215722, and 11211523).

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Author notes

  1. Lung Chow, Guangyao Zhao, and Pengcheng Wu have contributed equally to this work.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biomedical Engineering, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 999077, China

    Lung Chow, Guangyao Zhao, Pengcheng Wu, **ngcan Huang, Jiyu Li, Jian Li, Guihuan Guo, Zhiyuan Li, Jiachen Wang, **gkun Zhou, Yawen Yang, Yuyu Gao, Binbin Zhang, Qiang Zhang, Dengfeng Li, Ya Huang, Kuanming Yao & **nge Yu

  2. Hong Kong Centre for Cerebro-Cardiovascular Health Engineering, Hong Kong, 999077, China

    Jiyu Li, Jian Li, **gkun Zhou, Binbin Zhang, Dengfeng Li, Ya Huang & **nge Yu

  3. Department of Biomedical Sciences, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 999077, China

    Wanying Wang

  4. Department of Mechanical Engineering, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 999077, China

    Jian Lu

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  1. Lung Chow
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Contributions

XGY and LC initiated the concept and proposed the project. LC developed the device and collected the overall data. GYZ and LC led and developed the laser cutting process. PCW and LC carried out the mechanical modeling of circuit design and finite element analysis. XCH, JYL, JL (Jian Li), WYW, and GHG assisted in fabrication and characterization. ZYL, JCW, JKZ, YWY, and LC organized the wear trial. LC and XGY wrote the manuscript. All authors contributed to discussing the data and commenting on the final manuscript.

Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Jian Lu or **nge Yu.

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Conflict of interest

XGY is an associate editor for Bio-Design and Manufacturing and was not involved in the editorial review or the decision to publish this article. All the authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Ethical approval

All experiments involving human subjects were approved by the Research Committee of City University of Hong Kong, China, and conducted in compliance with the guidelines. The participants were informed and provided with written consent before taking part in the study.

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Chow, L., Zhao, G., Wu, P. et al. Soft, body conformable electronics for thermoregulation enabled by kirigami. Bio-des. Manuf. (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s42242-024-00290-6

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