Phase II year
2000
(last award dollars: 2001)
The electroencephalogram (EEG) electrode is a critical component for diagnosing and understanding neurological phenomenon. We have designed an innovative new electrode which will augment and further expand the EEG electrode's current use with emerging technologies. Electrode placement on the scalp is currently problematic, time consuming, and labor intensive. The new disposable electrode fulfills the requirements of standard silver/silver chloride, and provides signal quality equivalent to collodion placed electrodes. However, this design uniquely provides the ability for quick placement without messy adhesives. The small size, high comfort level, and quick placement attributes make the device ideal for critical care and ambulatory and extended monitoring. The goals, up through Phase III, are to design, prototype, validate, market, manufacture, and commercialize this novel electrode. PROPOSED COMMERCIAL APPLICATIONS: The new electrode is a convenient alternative for hospitals and physicians' offices when quick and easy placement is optimal for diagnosis and treatment. It provides an added dimension to emergency care and sleep research. Such an electrode could be used for daily wear applications such as seizure activity warning systems or long-term EEG monitors. The easy placement design supports the development of "awareness monitors" designed for pilots, truck drivers, and railroad engineers.
Thesaurus Terms: biomedical equipment development, consumable /disposable biomedical equipment, electroencephalography, evaluation /testing, silver chloride electrode colloid, gel, rapid diagnosis bioimaging /biomedical imaging, clinical research, human subject