RESCUE: REal-time, wearable System for traCking mUscle gEometry

Monitoring, understanding, and mitigating the rapid atrophying of muscles that occurs during spaceflight is key to preserving human health during space missions and extending the duration of human-manned missions. Hence, technology with the ability to track real- time muscle volume and performance in space is crucial. Such technology should: (a) be integrable into a comfortable, lightweight, and unobtrusive form-factor; (b) be able to monitor both large and small muscles; and (c) be reliable and accurate. To this end, we propose RESCUE (REal-time, wearable System for traCking mUscle gEometry), a new class of functionalized garments that utilize multi-mode loops to monitor real-time muscle geometry, a power bio-signal that has been restricted to laboratory settings by a gap in technology. RESCUE brings forward innovations in magnetoinductive waveguides (MIWs), antennas, and algorithms to facilitate the first wearable device with the power to monitor muscle geometry, a bio-signal that has been used to derive key real-time muscle health metrics (muscle volume, force output, fatigue, etc.). RESCUE utilizes a novel multi-mode architecture consisting of conductive loops sewn from e-thread with distinct low- and high-frequency behavior. Lightweight, unobtrusive, and flexible design will empower continuous muscle monitoring. A preliminary investigation into the proposed system has demonstrated the feasibility of each mode of operation, and previous research into muscle geometry as it relates to clinically relevant data has demonstrated the value of the proposed sensor.

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