Non-Newtonian Acoustic Gel for Wearable Ultrasound Monitoring System

Wearable ultrasound systems are pushing the boundaries of conventional methods, allowing for continuous and real-time patient care and diagnostics. However, these systems face limitations due to the use of traditional coupling media, which tend to dehydrate quickly during long-term use, leading to a decline in image quality over time. Furthermore, when ultrasound probes are attached to wearable mounts on curved human surfaces, the use of conventional acoustic gel can result in imperfect probe edge contact. In this work, we present a non-Newtonian acoustic gel coupler with low dehydration rate and good structural stability suitable for wearable ultrasound systems that overcomes the shortcomings of conventional acoustic gel. The proposed acoustic gel coupler exhibited low dehydration rate of 32%, over a frequency range of 4.60 MHz to 10.60 MHz. In addition, the acoustic coupler also showed an an improvement of 35% in lateral resolution on curved surfaces making it suitable for wearable applications without compromising performance.