Minimally invasive battery-less microcontroller enabled implantable NFC tag for healthcare sensing applications

This paper presents a minimally invasive battery-less microcontroller enabled implant that utilizes near-field communication technology to both power and transfer data to and from the implanted device. The implant has been designed around a cylindrical glass vial for its housing, of the type found in pet and livestock identification. Requiring just an injector assembly for implantation it can be deemed as minimally invasive. The prototype tag incorporates a near-field communication front end, providing data transfer and power to a microcontroller and a light emitting diode array, with a maximum measured read range of ~ 5 mm off the skin surface. Although light technology can be used for neural stimulation here it is used as a proof of concept before enabling further sensing modalities. The tag is proposed for use as a wireless platform for patient health monitoring in both clinical and home environments using a smartphone as the reader. It could also have applications in general wellbeing monitoring or sports.