Optical Fibre Sensors Embedded into

The European project (GriUet et al., 2008) Optical Fibre Sensors Embedded into Technical Textiles for Healthcare (OFSETH), which was started in 2008, has explored three techniques to exploit the potential of optical fibres as sensors (Narbonneau et al.. 

Location and direction of sensors in composite hosts usually the FBG sensor is used to measure certain positional and directional normal strain in the host. However, in the procedure of embedding the FBG sensor into the composite host, some deviation of the optic fibre sensor may occur from the designed position and direction. To reduce the measurement error, determination of the real location of the grating of FBG sensors inside the composite may be a key issue, especially when the sensors are... 

Optical fibre-based sensors have drawn most researchers attention, due to their versatility and compatibility with structural composites. They can detect a number of parameters such as temperature, strain and pressure and can be embedded into composites without major changes in the current manufacturing processes. 

A new type of smart medical textile embedding optical fibres for monitoring anesthetized or sedated patients under MRI examination is presented. Preliminaiy results of the behaviour of optical fibres onbedded into elastic and non-elastic fabrics are given. In addition, a preliminary proof of concept of an elastic fiibric cqrable of monitoring respiratory movements is reported. The fiirfher development of fire smart textile incorporating sensors for the acquisition of ECG, plethysmographic waveform... 

In conclusion, fibre optic sensors are ideal eandidates to be embedded in textile structural composites for monitoring manufaeturing processes and internal health eonditions. The sensors provide an effective means by whieh the distributions of a number of physieal parameters, such as temperature, stress/strain, thermal expansion, pressure, ete., ean be quantitatively determined. In integrating the sensors into textile eomposites, apart from the properties of the sensors themselves, the rehabihty of the sensors and sensing seheme as well... 

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