Jing Qingshen, Pace Alizée, Ives Liam, Husmann Anke, Ćatić Nordin, Khanduja Vikas, Cama Jehangir, Kar-Narayan Sohini
Department of Materials Science & Metallurgy, University of Cambridge, 27 Charles Babbage Road, Cambridge CB3 0FS, UK.
Cambridge Young Adult Hip Service, Addenbrooke's-Cambridge University Hospitals, Box 37, Hills Road, Cambridge CB2 0QQ, UK.
Cell Rep Phys Sci. 2021 Apr 21;2(4):100386. doi: 10.1016/j.xcrp.2021.100386.
Force sensors that are thin, low-cost, flexible, and compatible with commercial microelectronic chips are of great interest for use in biomedical sensing, precision surgery, and robotics. By leveraging a combination of microfluidics and capacitive sensing, we develop a thin, flexible force sensor that is conformable and robust. The sensor consists of a partially filled microfluidic channel made from a deformable material, with the channel overlaying a series of interdigitated electrodes coated with a thin, insulating polymer layer. When a force is applied to the microfluidic channel reservoir, the fluid is displaced along the channel over the electrodes, thus inducing a capacitance change proportional to the applied force. The microfluidic molds themselves are made of low-cost sacrificial materials deposited via aerosol-jet printing, which is also used to print the electrode layer. We envisage a large range of industrial and biomedical applications for this force sensor.
薄型、低成本、柔性且与商用微电子芯片兼容的力传感器在生物医学传感、精准手术和机器人技术中具有极大的应用价值。通过结合微流体技术和电容传感技术，我们开发出一种薄型、柔性的力传感器，它贴合性好且坚固耐用。该传感器由一个由可变形材料制成的部分填充微流体通道组成，通道覆盖着一系列涂有薄绝缘聚合物层的叉指电极。当对微流体通道储液器施加力时，流体沿通道在电极上方移动，从而引起与施加力成比例的电容变化。微流体模具本身由通过气溶胶喷射印刷沉积的低成本牺牲材料制成，该技术也用于印刷电极层。我们设想这种力传感器有广泛的工业和生物医学应用。
