Potentials of additive manufacturing with smart materials for chemical biomarkers in wearable applications

Abstract

In this paper, recent technology for wearables to detect electrolyte of sweat and biocompatible smart materials for additive manufacturing (AM) have been surveyed. The challenges and gaps toward successful realization of functional wearable devices as a kit to test biomarkers were, then, discussed. While wearable devices sensing physical conditions of users are popular in a consumer market, wearable devices to detect chemical components of human sweat have little studied due to several limitations such as contacting human skin and controlling ambient parameters etc. AM technology makes innovative products realized, differing from conventional fabrication and design methodologies due to unlimited design freedom for manufacturing and material selections. We investigate the potentials of AM to be applied for wearable devices, although detecting chemical biofluids requires wider and deeper researches on the development of advanced materials and AM process.