A scientists team at the University of Washington, in the USA, has discovered that slitting the paper tissues when they are overburdened with nanoparticles, will act as a sensor. Thus, the scientists have been able to create a wearable sensor made of paper tissue.
The wearable sensor created with paper fibers is able to sense eye’s movements, heartbeat, finger force, and much more, as Jae-Hyun Chung, a professor at the UW Associate, declared.
“The major breakthrough is a disposable wearable sensor fabricated with inexpensive tissue paper. When the specimen is broken by us, it will function as a sensor,” he said.
Moreover, the sensor can be applied in various fields, from medicine to fitness
The researchers have stated that such a device can be easily used for examining the brain’s functions.
Besides, it can be used by the parents of special-needs kids to follow his/her movements inside or outside the house plus that it will offer precious readings about kids’ health, so, the parents won’t have to call for a doctor to do the regular checkups.
“The sensors can be disposed of after using them for one time,” said Chung.
Researchers have used toilet-paper-like fibers o create the sensor
Scientists took the paper tissues and soaked them in water enriched with carbon nanotubes (highly electrical current conductive elements). Each tissue of paper presents vertical fibers as well as horizontal fibers, in order to notify the sensor about what exactly has happened.
The newly created sensor will be immediately applicable, as soon as the scientists will improve it for commercial release.
Scientists admitted they will need more time for exporting the sensor for wide usage
By now, the sensor has only been tested under laboratory conditions. However, in lab practice, it has acted as expected.
Now, the researchers have to conduct more studies on the sensor and they must improve the wearable sensor made of paper tissue in order to be used at a commercial scale.
