MOUNT ZION COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY

DEPARTMENT OF ELECTRONICS AND COMMUNICATION ENGINEERING

CBM341 – BODY AREA NETWORKS

UNIT III- WIRELESS COMMUNICATION AND NETWORK

Mrs.A.Taksala Devapriya, AP/ECE

17.03.2025 MZCET/ECE/VI/CBM341/BAN 1
3.2

UNIT-III WIRELESS COMMUNICATION AND NETWORK

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3.1 RF communication in Body

3.2 Antenna design and testing
3.3 Propagation
3.4 Base Station-Network topology
3.5 Stand –Alone BAN,
3.6 Wireless personal Area Network Technologies-IEEE 802.15.1
3.7 IEEE P802.15.13
3.8 IEEE 802.15.14
3.9 Zigbee. MZCET/ECE/VI/CBM341/BAN 21.2.2024
 UNIT-III WIRELESS COMMUNICATION AND NETW
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COURSE OBJECTIVES
◻ To know the hardware requirement of BAN

◻ To understand the communication and security aspects in the BAN

◻ To know the applications of BAN in the field of medicine

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3.2
UNIT III-INTRODUCTION
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Course Outcome:
◻ To comprehensively grasp the significance and role of this course in today's

contemporary world, it's essential to explore its relevance, impact, and

applications across different domains

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Previous Class:
Today’s Class Outline:
◻ 3.2 Antenna design and testing
◻ 3.1 RF communication in Body

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Antenna design and testing
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Resonant Antenna Challenges:

◻ Designing resonant antennas for in-body applications faces hurdles due to the
differing dielectric properties of body tissues compared to air.
◻ Alterations in tissue dielectric constants affect the physical dimensions needed
for resonance.
Dimension Reduction:
◻ While a half-wave dipole for 403 MHz in air is 372 mm, in muscle it shrinks to
52.6 mm.
◻ Despite this reduction, classical resonant antennas remain impractical for
in-body use due to size constraints.
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◻ Variations in Dielectric Constant:

◻ Each body may have a different dielectric constant (εr), which can change
with weight fluctuations or implant movements.
◻ These variations lead to non-resonant behavior and reduced antenna
efficacy, posing challenges for reliable in-body communication.
◻ Practicality Concerns:
◻ Resonant antennas are often too large for in-body use even with reduced
dimensions.
◻ This impracticality necessitates exploring alternative antenna designs and
operating principles tailored for efficient communication within the bod
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Antenna design and testing
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◻ Tuneability and Optimization:

◻ In-body antennas require tuneability enabled by an intelligent transceiver
and routine adjustments.
◻ This allows optimization of the antenna coupling circuit to achieve the best
signal strength.
◻ Non-resonant Antenna Choice:
◻ Size constraints often necessitate the selection of a non-resonant antenna
for in-body applications.
◻ Non-resonant antennas typically have lower gain, resulting in reduced
sensitivity during reception and less efficient power radiation from the
transmitter.
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Antenna design and testing
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◻ Effectiveness in MICS Band:

◻ Operating within the Medical Implant Communication Service (MICS) band
at 403 MHz presents challenges.
◻ Antennas sized to comfortably fit within the body may not perform as well
as those designed for operation in air without space constraints.
◻ Importance of Antenna Coupling Circuit:
◻ Given the limitations of in-body antennas, the design of the antenna
coupling circuit becomes even more critical.
◻ Optimizing the coupling circuit can help compensate for the inherent
drawbacks of in-body antennas and improve overall system performance.
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◻ Location-dependent Antenna Options:

◻ The location of the implant dictates the viable antenna options.
◻ For instance, a urethra valve, such as an artificial bladder sphincter, requires
replacement at regular intervals without surgery.
◻ Size Constraints:
◻ The available diameter for the urethra valve is limited to 4–6 mm, and the
length is also restricted.
◻ These constraints rule out certain antenna types, such as patch antennas,
due to their size.

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◻ Challenges with Traditional Antennas:

◻ Traditional antenna types like monopoles or dipoles may theoretically fit
but would be difficult to keep in place given the limited space and
movement within the body.
◻ Optimal Solution: Helical Antenna Integration:
◻ Integrating a helical antenna into the shape of the valve implant emerges as
the best option.
◻ This approach addresses the size constraints and stability concerns while
providing a practical solution for in-body communication needs.

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◻ Patch antennas are suitable when the implant is flat and there is no space to
deploy a short wire antenna.
◻ Patch Antenna Composition:
◻ Patch antennas consist of a flat substrate coated on both sides with a
conductor.
◻ The substrate material, typically alumina or a similar biocompatible
material, is coated with platinum or platinum/iridium.
◻ The upper surface of the patch antenna serves as the active face and is
connected to the transceiver.
◻ The back face is usually connected to the implant's 0V.
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Antenna design and testing
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◻ Feed-Through Requirement:
◻ The connection to the transceiver passes through the case, where a airtight
seal is maintained.
◻ A feed-through is necessary for this connection, and it must not contain
filter capacitors, which are common in other devices.

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Antenna design and testing
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◻ Connection Methods:

◻ Connection to the active surface can be achieved either through a

hole in the substrate or via a wire connected to the top.

◻ The back face can be connected to the case using conductive epoxy
if it is attached to 0V or via wire.

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◻ Electrical Size vs. Physical Size:

◻ Patch antennas appear electrically larger than their physical size when
immersed in a medium with a high dielectric constant (εr).
◻ By using substrates with higher dielectric constants like Titania or
Zirconia, patch antennas can be made to appear even larger electrically.
◻ Example Implementation:
◻ An example of a patch antenna mounted on a test implant
◻ The dimensions of the patch are 19.5 x 32 x 1.0 mm, utilizing an alumina
substrate.
◻ This configuration was successfully employed in propagation tests for
signals transmitted to and from a live patient.

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◻ Planar Inverted F (PIF) Antennas:

◻ PIF antennas, commonly used in small mobile phones, are also suitable for
implanted devices due to shared performance challenges.
◻ These antennas are mounted onto the case and encased in a non-conductive
material for mechanical stability.
◻ Despite their small size, PIF antennas have been found effective in various
applications.
◻ Off-Resonance Antennas:
◻ Off-resonance antennas, like patches, typically have low radiation resistance,
usually a few Ohms.
◻ Achieving better radiation requires higher radiation resistance, often
necessitating a larger structure.

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◻ Loop Antennas:
◻ Loop antennas offer an alternative option and can be deployed away from the
implant case or other metal.
◻ Loop antennas primarily operate with the magnetic field, whereas dipole,
patch, and monopole antennas mainly interact with the electric field.
◻ Despite their smaller size, loop antennas deliver comparable performance to
dipoles.
◻ The magnetic permeability of muscle or fat is similar to that of air, reducing the
need for retuning compared to dielectric constant variations.
◻ Loop antennas require mounting away from the case on a biocompatible
structure.
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◻ Return Loss:

◻ Return loss measures how much of the signal sent to the antenna is reflected back versus how
much is radiated.

◻ An ideal return loss value (Γ) is 0, indicating no reflection, while 1 represents total reflection.

◻ Radiation Efficiency:

◻ Small antennas may exhibit a good return loss but poor radiation, necessitating the
measurement of radiation efficiency.

◻ Radiation efficiency quantifies the portion of the power absorbed by the antenna that is
actually radiated into space.
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Antenna design and testing
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To design a matching network:

◻

Measure antenna impedance in a representative medium.

◻

Testing in-air is limited; a body phantom mimics human tissue.

◻

The phantom, comprising water, sodium chloride, sugar, and HEC, simulates
◻

muscle or brain tissue properties in the 100 MHz to GHz range

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Antenna Impedance and Radiation Resistance Measurement:

◻

Understanding antenna impedance is crucial for in-body communication

◻

system

Setup: Immerse the antenna in a body phantom liquid within a Perspex

◻

cylinder. However, this method may face challenges due to potential liquid
leaks affecting results.

Alternative Method: Mount the patch antenna on a copper plate and press it
◻

against a bag of the phantom to mitigate leakage issues.

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3.2 A patch, for example, is mounted on a copper plate and
pushed against a bag of the phantom (Fig. )
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Measurement: If the real part of impedance exceeds 10 Ω, a network

analyzer can be employed. However, for lower impedance values, an
alternative method is necessary.

Low Radiation Resistance: In cases of low radiation resistance, a different

measurement approach is needed. This is especially relevant for implanted
antennas, which can be challenging to measure directly on a network
analyzer.

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◻ Quarter Wave Line Impedance Measurement:

An alternative to using a network analyzer directly is
coupling a signal into a quarter wavelength line and
measuring signal loss.
Changes in resonant frequency and Q (quality factor) can
determine patch impedance.
The center conductor length is 0.25 λ, and impedance is
defined by center conductor and outer tube diameters.
The feeds use RG402, 50 Ω, semi-rigid cable terminated
with SMA connectors, clamped in place.

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◻ Quarter Wave Line Impedance Measurement:

The center bar's bottom has a split collet for attaching the test
sample, while spacers are PTFE and the rest of the jig is copper.

A reference short circuit plate made of brass in contact with the

center conductor calibrates the line.

The line connects to a network analyzer, set to measure S21

(transmitted signal from Port 1 to Port 2).
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Quarter Wave Line Impedance Measurement:

S21 measurement reveals a peak at the resonant
frequency, and further measurements determine
the antenna's Q.
Resonant frequency and Q of the line are
measured, with Q defined as
1. Q=f centre/ B3dB
2. where fcentre is centre frequency and B3dB

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Quarter Wave Line Impedance

Measurement:
With the line impedance, the loss can be derived
from
Rloss/ Zo = Nπ/4Q
where N is the number of quarter wavelengths,
and Rloss is the resistance of the line

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◻ Quarter Wave Line Impedance Measurement:

◻ Resonant frequency and Q are measured again and the radiation

resistance is
Rmeasure/Z= Nπ/4Q
Rrad = Rmeasure - R loss

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Quarter Wave Line Impedance Measurement:

◻ After determining the real part of impedance, the imaginary part can be
found.

◻ Simulation software is best for this, using a model of the transmission line
with a load of Rrad in parallel or series with a capacitor or inductor.

◻ Capacitor value is tuned to match the resonant frequency measured with

the network analyzer.

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Quarter Wave Line Impedance Measurement:

◻ Even with a known impedance or resonance at the required frequency,
effective radiation is not guaranteed.

◻ Performance measurement using a body phantom with the transceiver in

the case and sense or stimulant wires attached is essential.

◻ The Wheeler Cap is useful for measuring antenna efficiency.

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Quarter Wave Line Impedance Measurement:

◻ Simulation of the line feeds is unnecessary; measurement is taken from the
end of the line.

◻ This technique can be adapted for other antennas by using semi-rigid coax
or printed transmission line terminated with a reference short and antenna.

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3.2
Summary
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◻ Antenna design
◻ Patch Antenna

MZCET/ECE/VI/CBM341/BAN 21.2.2024
 References
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◻ https://youtu.be/mZnZKvsf8i8

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