Body-worn spiral monopole antenna for body-centric communications

A novel body-worn spiral monopole antenna is presented. The antenna consists of a ground plane and a spiral monopole. The antenna is designed for Ear-to-Ear (E2E) communication between In-the-Ear (ITE) Hearing Instruments (HIs) at 2.45 GHz and has been simulated, prototyped and measured. The antenna yields a measured and simulated Ear-to-Ear path gain at 2.45 GHz of -82.1 dB and -85.9 dB, respectively. The radiation pattern of the antenna when mounted in the ear is presented and discussed.