Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, 291 Daehak-ro, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon 34141, Republic of Korea.
Sci Rep. 2017 Jan 25;7:39837. doi: 10.1038/srep39837.
The practical utilization of soft nanocomposites as a strain mapping sensor in tactile sensors and artificial skins requires robustness for various contact conditions as well as low-cost fabrication process for large three dimensional surfaces. In this work, we propose a multi-point and multi-directional strain mapping sensor based on multiwall carbon nanotube (MWCNT)-silicone elastomer nanocomposites and anisotropic electrical impedance tomography (aEIT). Based on the anisotropic resistivity of the sensor, aEIT technique can reconstruct anisotropic resistivity distributions using electrodes around the sensor boundary. This strain mapping sensor successfully estimated stretch displacements (error of 0.54 ± 0.53 mm), surface normal forces (error of 0.61 ± 0.62 N), and multi-point contact locations (error of 1.88 ± 0.95 mm in 30 mm × 30 mm area for a planar shaped sensor and error of 4.80 ± 3.05 mm in 40 mm × 110 mm area for a three dimensional contoured sensor). In addition, the direction of lateral stretch was also identified by reconstructing anisotropic distributions of electrical resistivity. Finally, a soft human-machine interface device was demonstrated as a practical application of the developed sensor.
作为触觉传感器和人造皮肤中的应变映射传感器，软纳米复合材料的实际应用需要在各种接触条件下具有鲁棒性，并且需要具有用于大型三维表面的低成本制造工艺。在这项工作中，我们提出了一种基于多壁碳纳米管（MWCNT）-硅酮弹性体纳米复合材料和各向异性电阻抗断层成像（aEIT）的多点和多向应变映射传感器。基于传感器的各向异性电阻率，aEIT 技术可以使用传感器边界周围的电极重建各向异性电阻率分布。这种应变映射传感器成功估计了拉伸位移（误差为 0.54 ± 0.53 毫米）、表面法向力（误差为 0.61 ± 0.62 N）和多点接触位置（在 30 毫米×30 毫米区域的平面形状传感器中误差为 1.88 ± 0.95 毫米，在 40 毫米×110 毫米区域的三维轮廓传感器中误差为 4.80 ± 3.05 毫米）。此外，还通过重建各向异性电阻率分布来识别横向拉伸的方向。最后，演示了一种软人机接口设备，作为所开发传感器的实际应用。
