A chameleon-inspired stretchable electronic skin with interactive colour changing controlled by tactile sensing

Abstract

Some animals, such as the chameleon and cephalopod, have the remarkable capability to change their skin colour. This unique characteristic has long inspired scientists to develop materials and devices to mimic such a function. However, it requires the complex integration of stretchability, colour-changing and tactile sensing. Here we show an all-solution processed chameleon-inspired stretchable electronic skin (e-skin), in which the e-skin colour can easily be controlled through varying the applied pressure along with the applied pressure duration. As such, the e-skin's colour change can also be in turn utilized to distinguish the pressure applied. The integration of the stretchable, highly tunable resistive pressure sensor and the fully stretchable organic electrochromic device enables the demonstration of a stretchable electrochromically active e-skin with tactile-sensing control. This system will have wide range applications such as interactive wearable devices, artificial prosthetics and smart robots.

A skin-attachable, stretchable integrated system based on liquid GaInSn for wireless human motion monitoring with multi-site sensing capabilities

“…1 Advanced concepts in stretchable materials and mechanics principles form the basis for devices that can gently laminate onto the soft and curvilinear surfaces of human skin or conformally wrap onto internal organs of the body. [2][3][4][5] Gallium-based liquid metals are highly suitable candidates for such applications due to their unlimited deformability while maintaining excellent metallic conductivity. The use of gallium-based liquid-metal alloys confined in elastomeric enclosures provides intrinsically stretchable properties that maintain bulk electrical conductivity with high stretchability.…”

Tailoring force sensitivity and selectivity by microstructure engineering of multidirectional electronic skins

“…In addition, the strong adhesion properties of pillar structures provide a new possibility for skinattachable and wearable healthcare devices 1 . Considering these geometrical effects of microstructure arrays on the performance of e-skins, previously, geometrical parameters such as shape, size, and space of microstructure arrays have been controlled to enhance the mechanical sensitivity and operation range of piezoresistive 20 and capacitive e-skins 15 and the power generation of self-powered e-skins [16][17][18][21][22][23] . Since the geometrical shape of microstructure significantly affects the contact area and localized stress of microstructure under pressure, several attempts to find the relationship between the shape of microstructure and the sensitivity of various eskins have been performed.…”

Ultrastretchable Fiber Sensor with High Sensitivity in Whole Workable Range for Wearable Electronics and Implantable Medicine

“…Typically, the sensing materials include metal nanowires,8, 9, 10 conducting polymers,11 and carbon nanomaterials, such as carbon nanotubes12, 13 and graphene,14, 15 and so on. However, currently, very few stretchable strain sensors based on these materials simultaneously possess a large workable strain range and high sensitivity, which severely limits their applications.…”