Body-worn sensors for monitoring warrior physical and mental state

Wearable human state monitors must be mechanically invisible to greatest degree possible, to maximize comfort, wearability, hygiene and signal quality. These device attributes are aligned with the goal of closely coupling devices to the body for best-quality signal capture and continuous health monitoring by seamlessly integrating with the body, under clothing and gear. They must be robust to dynamic motion in moist environments and under constant mechanical stresses. MC10 & UIUC jointly propose Mechanically-iNvisible electronic Tattoo (Mentat), an ultra-lightweight evolution of MC10"s existing conformal (flexible & stretchable), adhesive commercial platform for wearable electronics. Mentat will miniaturize and reduce the profile of conventional wearable electronics, resulting in electronics systems that look like tattoos in weight and thickness. Software apps will run on remote smart devices to integrate and evaluate wearer status in context of personal parameters and health history. In Phase II we will conduct military-grade environmental testing of electronics hardware to establish system robustness. We will assess realistic proxy metrics for comfort & wearability while electronic tattoos operate under sustained PPE/gear loads during field activity, or unloaded but needing to operate wet. Mentat will provide leap-ahead beyond current state-of-art technology in ultra-low-power electronics, wireless communications & management for energy efficiency.