# Wearable IoT-Enabled Galvanic Skin Response Device for Objective Pain and Stress Monitoring: Hardware Design and Prototype Development

## TL;DR

A new wearable device uses GSR to monitor pain and stress in real-time, offering a low-cost and wireless solution for patients with limited communication abilities.

## Contribution

The novel contribution is a wearable IoT-enabled GSR system with BLE communication and motion artifact filtering for objective pain and stress monitoring.

## Key findings

- The device demonstrated reliable detection of stress-induced GSR fluctuations in healthy subjects.
- The system effectively reduces movement artifacts, improving signal robustness.
- The design is compact, ergonomic, and suitable for real-time wireless monitoring.

## Abstract

Accurate pain and stress assessment remains a challenge in patients with limited communication ability. Current galvanic skin response (GSR) devices lack real-time feedback, wireless communication, and robustness against motion artifacts, limiting their clinical utility. This paper presents the design and development of a wearable internet-of-things (IoT) enabled GSR system incorporating Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) communication, ergonomic mechanical housing, and artifact-filtering through a custom API. The system integrates finger-mounted electrodes, a custom amplifier and signal processor, an nRF52840 BLE microcontroller, and a rechargeable Li-ion battery in a compact 3D-printed wrist-mounted enclosure. Basic validation with two healthy subjects demonstrated reliable detection of stress-induced GSR fluctuations with reduced movement artifacts. Results indicate the feasibility of the proposed design as a low-cost, wireless, and ergonomic solution for objective pain and stress monitoring.