A Development of Fabric Electrodes for Long-term Respiration Monitoring

The Ag/AgCl electrode is one of the most commonly used electrodes for determining respiration activity. Although it is easy to use, Ag/AgCl electrodes are disposable and may not be suitable for long-term use or conditions involving body movement. This study explores the effectiveness of wearable fabric electrodes for respiratory monitoring. Fabric electrodes were developed, and the bioimpedance of the thorax was measured for monitoring respiration function. The correlation between the bioimpedance obtained using the developed fabric electrodes and commercial Ag/AgCl electrodes was investigated. Three experimental conditions with varying body movements were implemented: resting, exercising by riding a training bicycle, and post-exercising. The results revealed a strong correlation (with an average correlation of 0.88) between the fabric and Ag/AgCl electrodes across all conditions, confirming their potential as viable alternatives. The resting condition provided the highest correlation (r = 0.93), while the exercising condition exhibited the lowest correlation (r = 0.84). The fabric electrodes demonstrated significant advantages in reusability, reduced skin irritation, and long-term firm attachment. However, when using a strap to hold the fabric electrodes in place, attachment challenges in high-curvature thorax areas led to reduced signal quality during exercise.