Wi-Fi Enabled Textile and Wearable Antennas for Healthcare Devices

Abstract

Wireless connectivity has become integral to our daily routines, with Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) technology serving as a key enabler. This role has gained even greater significance in the current landscape, marked by the proliferation of sensors and Internet of Things (IoT) devices that rely on WLAN for control. Most WLANs adhere to the IEEE 802.11 standards, commonly known as Wi-Fi networks. Notably, these networks operate within the frequency bands 2.401-2.484 GHz and 5.170-5.835 GHz. The recent Wi-Fi 7 adds the new band of 5.95 GHz-7.125 GHz The primary focus of this chapter is on compact textile antennas that may be placed on different body parts, as a single-element antenna or forming a multiple input multiple output (MIMO) antenna system capable of communicating with WiFi Access Points (APs) featuring diverse polarizations. This chapter explores the types of wearable antennas, materials, and fabrication technologies, performance analysis under bending, crumpling, and sweating, integration with Wi-Fi transceivers, and safety regulations and considerations.