Acousto-Electric Wireless Pressure Sensing System

Internal pressures of biological organs are important biomarkers for several diseases and conditions. While many wireless pressure sensor systems have been developed to allow chronic management of internal pressures, most of them are passive LC transponders whose interrogation lengths are limited. To overcome this limitation in sensing distance while maintaining the small sensor dimensions, we present an acousto-electric wireless pressure sensing system whose resonant frequency is modulated through variable inductance under external pressure. The ultrasonic energy is utilized to generate RF signals containing the resonant frequency of the sensor. We designed, fabricated, and tested the acousto-electric wireless pressure sensing system; the sensor has a sensitivity of 0.66 kHz/mmHg and an interrogation distance > 10 cm.