Investigation of e-textile dipole antenna performance based on embroidery parameters

Abstract

E-textile antennas have the potential to be the premier on-body wearable sensor. Embroidery techniques, which can be applied to produce e-textile antennas, assist in large production volumes and fast production speeds. This paper focuses on the effects of three commonly used embroidery parameters, namely stitch type, conductive thread location, and stabilizer, on the performance of embroidered dipole antennas in order to determine the ideal embroidery combination for optimal antenna performance. Fifty-four dipole antenna samples were fabricated and measured at the industrial, scientific, and medical (ISM) frequency band of 2.45 GHz. The results of this study show that machine-embroidered antenna designs with satin stitches resonate at a lower frequency and exhibit a lower transmission gain compared with those made with contour stiches, and the conductive thread location in the bobbin location plus the use of a water-soluble stabilizer can help improve impedance matching.

Bending Assessment and On-body Investigation of a Textile Antenna for Body-Centric Wireless Communication Applications

“…Usually, while fabricating the textile antennas, the insulation elements of the antennas are made with dielectric fibres. The conductive radiating and ground elements are actualised using several techniques like inkjet printing [3] and screen printing [4], conductive tapes or fibres [5][6], embroidering [7], and wet-etching [8]. Modern advanced manufacturing methods help fabricate these wearable antennas in huge volumes and help attain a compact size, dualpolarization (linear and circular) and low profile.…”