Chungnam National University Develops EEG Patch That Moves With Skin Wrinkles

A research team at Chungnam National University has developed a next-generation wearable electroencephalography (EEG) patch capable of continuously measuring brain activity, even with the movement of skin wrinkles. Existing wearable EEG sensors were vulnerable to changes in skin wrinkles caused by users' facial expressions or tossing and turning during sleep, due to their skin attachment method. This instability led to signal noise or even made measurements impossible.

The Chungnam National University team solved this problem by incorporating the 'kirigami' technique into its design, which involves cutting and folding paper to create three-dimensional structures. This method enables the patch's form to flexibly adapt to skin movements while stably maintaining the electrode contact surface.

The developed patch uses image-based automatic design technology to automatically generate kirigami patterns optimized for each user's forehead wrinkle patterns, enabling custom fabrication. In actual experiments, the research team succeeded in collecting stable EEG data, recording a high signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) even amidst vigorous movements.

This technology can be applied to digital healthcare fields such as sleep quality analysis, brain-computer interfaces (BCI), and telemedicine.