Flexible antenna design for wireless medical body area networks in healthcare

Abstract This paper presents the design and experimental evaluation of a compact, flexible textile antenna for Wireless Body Area Network (WBAN) applications in biomedicine. The proposed antenna is fabricated using flexible Jeans textile, selected for its favorable mechanical properties, biocompatibility, and comfort in wearable applications. With compact dimensions of 24 × 24 × 0.8 mm 3 , with a triangular patch optimized for enhanced impedance matching and a partial ground plane. The results demonstrate a wide operational bandwidth of 45.91% (4.85–7.74 GHz), a peak gain of 2.3 dB, and a radiation efficiency of up to 80%. The Specific Absorption Rate (SAR) was calculated to evaluate the level of exposure to electromagnetic radiation and its potential effects on biological tissue. The results showed that the maximum SAR value of 0.217 W kg −1 (1 g tissue) and 0.792 W kg −1 (10 g tissue), are much lower than the safe limits recommended by international safety standards. In addition, along with flexibility and biocompatibility, the proposed antenna offers a compact design compared to conventional wearable antennas, while preserving favorable mechanical properties, cost efficiency, ease of fabrication, and robust performance under real-world conditions. These attributes position it as a promising candidate for biomedical telemetry systems, particularly in applications requiring continuous health monitoring and wireless medical data transmission.