Murata’s Revolutionary Stretchable Printed Circuit Elevates Wearable Medical Devices

KYOTO, Japan--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov 7, 2024--

Murata Manufacturing Co., Ltd. (TOKYO: 6981) (ISIN: JP3914400001) reveals an innovative new Stretchable Printed Circuit (SPC) technology marking a significant development in printed circuit technology. Murata's SPC represents the next advancement in substrate development, providing both flexibility and the capability to stretch and deform while maintaining full functionality. It is perfect for creating advanced medical products, like wearable therapeutic devices and vital monitoring tools, that can provide better accuracy, durability, and patient comfort than today’s equivalent devices.

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In recent years, in the medical field, to make more accurate diagnoses, the importance of sophisticated tests performed in hospitals and biometric information collected continuously in daily life has increased. Daily vital sign monitoring is important to prevent lifestyle-related diseases, therefore wearable medical devices are now ubiquitous. However, existing devices are often too stiff for many applications, creating issues like patient discomfort, poor surface contact, or unstable data acquisition. Murata's SPC excels in its inherent flexibility, stretchability, and ability to adapt, supporting multi-sensing functionalities to address diverse user requirements. The material is incredibly soft and gentle on the skin, making it ideal for medical and wellness devices like EEG (Electroencephalogram), EMG (Electromyogram), and ECG (Electrocardiogram). Its stretchable nature can enable a single device to accommodate various body areas and patients of different sizes, as well as allowing more easily for continuous monitoring applications or monitoring in previously challenging areas such as elbows or knee joints.

Engineered with cutting-edge capabilities, including printing stretchable electrodes compliant with ANSI/AAMI EC12 standards, SPC paves the way for next-generation medical devices. It achieves seamless integration and optimal performance through innovative telescopic component mounting and hybrid bonding technology between substrates. By effectively blocking electromagnetic noise, the unique shield layer offers reliable protection for the signal path. Additionally, the substrate construction demonstrates excellent reliability, with high resistance to moisture and the ability to withstand high voltages for long durations, while allowing for more flexibility in component mounting, giving designers more freedom to innovate.

Murata's SPC can be tailored to meet individual customer specifications with the help of Murata’s extensive range of resources to facilitate collaborative product development. This can be harnessed by product designers, enabling them to optimize their designs. Murata can further support development by conducting tests in various conditions and resolving failure modes by identifying their root causes. Depending on the required specifications, filters, amplifiers, and multiple sensors can be mounted on a single sheet, enabling accurate data acquisition and sensing of several items. With this solution, Murata performs custom design, prototyping and verification, and mass production based on the required specifications.

For further details or to request samples of Murata’s SPC solutions, you can contact your local Murata representation, or reach out via the contact form. You can find the product webpage here.

[Murata Manufacturing Co., Ltd.] Murata’s Stretchable Printed Circuit (SPC) (Photo: Business Wire)

[Murata Manufacturing Co., Ltd.] Murata’s Stretchable Printed Circuit (SPC) (Photo: Business Wire)

[Murata Manufacturing Co., Ltd.] Murata’s Stretchable Printed Circuit (SPC) (Photo: Business Wire)

LAS VEGAS (AP) — The person inside the Tesla Cybertruck that burst into flames outside President-elect Donald Trump’s Las Vegas hotel suffered a gunshot to the head before the explosion, officials said Thursday.

Clark County Sheriff Kevin McMahill said at a news conference that a handgun was found at the feet of the man who's been identified as Matthew Livelsberger. Officials believe the shot was self-inflicted.

Livelsberger served in the Green Berets, highly trained special forces who work to counter terrorism abroad and train partners, the Army said in a statement. He had served in the Army since 2006, rising through the ranks with a long career of overseas assignments, deploying twice to Afghanistan and serving in Ukraine, Tajikistan, Georgia and Congo, the Army said.

He was awarded two Bronze Stars, including one with a valor device for courage under fire, a combat infantry badge and an Army Commendation Medal with valor. Livelsberger was on approved leave when he died, according to the statement.

The FBI said Thursday in a post on X that it was “conducting law enforcement activity” at a home in Colorado Springs related to Wednesday's explosion but provided no other details.

The explosion of the truck, packed with firework mortars and camp fuel canisters, came hours after 42-year-old Shamsud-Din Bahar Jabbar rammed a truck into a crowd in New Orleans’ famed French Quarter early on New Year’s Day, killing at least 15 people before being shot to death by police. That crash was being investigated as a terrorist attack. The FBI said Thursday that they believe Jabbar acted alone, reversing its position from a day earlier that he likely worked with others.

Both Livelsberger and Jabbar spent time at the base formerly known as Fort Bragg, a massive Army base in North Carolina that is home to multiple Army special operations units. However, one of the officials who spoke to the AP said there is no overlap in their assignments at the base, now called Fort Liberty.

Chris Raia, FBI deputy assistant director, said Thursday that officials have found ‘no definitive link’ between the New Orleans attack and the truck explosion in Las Vegas.

Seven people nearby suffered minor injuries when the Tesla truck exploded. Video showed a tumble of charred fireworks mortars, canisters and other explosive devices crowded into the back of the pickup. The truck bed walls were still intact because the blast shot straight up rather than to the sides.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk said Wednesday afternoon on X that “we have now confirmed that the explosion was caused by very large fireworks and/or a bomb carried in the bed of the rented Cybertruck and is unrelated to the vehicle itself."

"All vehicle telemetry was positive at the time of the explosion,” Musk wrote.

Musk has recently become a member of Trump’s inner circle. Neither Trump nor Musk was in Las Vegas early Wednesday. Both had attended Trump’s New Year’s Eve party at his South Florida estate.

Authorities know who rented the truck with the Turo app in Colorado, Kevin McMahill, the elected sheriff of Clark County, which includes Las Vegas, said Wednesday. He did not release the person’s ID, however.

Copp, Richer and Long contributed from Washington.

Investigators enter a townhouse in northeastern Colorado Springs, Colo., Thursday, Jan. 2, 2025, as the investigation connected to the explosion of a Tesla Cybertruck outside President-elect Donald Trump's Las Vegas hotel continues. (Christian Murdock/The Gazette via AP)

Investigators stand outside a townhouse complex in northeastern Colorado Springs, Colo., Thursday, Jan. 2, 2025, as the investigation connected to the explosion of a Tesla Cybertruck outside President-elect Donald Trump's Las Vegas hotel continues. (Christian Murdock/The Gazette via AP)

Police block the area after a vehicle caught fire and exploded outside the lobby of President-elect Donald Trump's hotel Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Ty ONeil)

Police block the area after a vehicle caught fire and exploded outside the lobby of President-elect Donald Trump's hotel Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Ty ONeil)

Police block the area after a vehicle caught fire and exploded outside the lobby of President-elect Donald Trump's hotel Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Ty ONeil)

Police block the area after a vehicle caught fire and exploded outside the lobby of President-elect Donald Trump's hotel Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025. (AP Photo/Ty ONeil)