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Sarwar MS, Ishizaki R, Morton K, Preston C, Nguyen T, Fan X, Dupont B, Hogarth L, Yoshiike T, Qiu R, Wu Y, Mirabbasi S, Madden JDW. Touch, press and stroke: a soft capacitive sensor skin. Sci Rep 2023; 13:17390. [PMID: 37880294 PMCID: PMC10600100 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-43714-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/28/2022] [Accepted: 09/26/2023] [Indexed: 10/27/2023] Open
Abstract
Soft sensors that can discriminate shear and normal force could help provide machines the fine control desirable for safe and effective physical interactions with people. A capacitive sensor is made for this purpose, composed of patterned elastomer and containing both fixed and sliding pillars that allow the sensor to deform and buckle, much like skin itself. The sensor differentiates between simultaneously applied normal force and shear using summation and differences of signals from four deformable capacitors. Cross talk from shear to normal force is less than 2.5%, and between shear axes is less than 10%. Normal and shear stress sensitivity is 0.49 kPa and 0.31 kPa respectively, with a minimum displacement resolution of 40 μm. In addition, finger proximity is detectable at a range of up to 15 mm. The operation is demonstrated on a simple gripper holding a cup. The combination of features and the straightforward fabrication method make this sensor a candidate for implementation as a sensing skin for humanoid robotics applications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mirza S Sarwar
- Electrical and Computer Engineering, Advanced Materials and Process Engineering Laboratory, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, V6T 1Z4, Canada.
| | - Ryusuke Ishizaki
- Frontier Robotics, Innovative Research Excellence, Honda R&D Co., Ltd, 8-1 Honcho, Wako-shi, Saitama, 351-0188, Japan
| | - Kieran Morton
- Electrical and Computer Engineering, Advanced Materials and Process Engineering Laboratory, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, V6T 1Z4, Canada
| | - Claire Preston
- Electrical and Computer Engineering, Advanced Materials and Process Engineering Laboratory, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, V6T 1Z4, Canada
| | - Tan Nguyen
- Electrical and Computer Engineering, Advanced Materials and Process Engineering Laboratory, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, V6T 1Z4, Canada
| | - Xu Fan
- Electrical and Computer Engineering, Advanced Materials and Process Engineering Laboratory, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, V6T 1Z4, Canada
| | - Bertille Dupont
- Electrical and Computer Engineering, Advanced Materials and Process Engineering Laboratory, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, V6T 1Z4, Canada
| | - Leanna Hogarth
- Electrical and Computer Engineering, Advanced Materials and Process Engineering Laboratory, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, V6T 1Z4, Canada
| | - Takahide Yoshiike
- Frontier Robotics, Innovative Research Excellence, Honda R&D Co., Ltd, 8-1 Honcho, Wako-shi, Saitama, 351-0188, Japan
| | - Ruixin Qiu
- Electrical and Computer Engineering, Advanced Materials and Process Engineering Laboratory, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, V6T 1Z4, Canada
| | - Yiting Wu
- Electrical and Computer Engineering, Advanced Materials and Process Engineering Laboratory, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, V6T 1Z4, Canada
| | - Shahriar Mirabbasi
- Electrical and Computer Engineering, Advanced Materials and Process Engineering Laboratory, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, V6T 1Z4, Canada
| | - John D W Madden
- Electrical and Computer Engineering, Advanced Materials and Process Engineering Laboratory, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, V6T 1Z4, Canada.
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