Flexible Tactile Sensor Skin Using Wireless Sensor Elements Coupled with 2D Microwaves

Abstract

The stretchable sensor skin we propose uses microwaves propagating in a two-Dimensional Signal Transmission (2DST) sheet. A small tactile sensor chip with a pair of Resonant Proximity Connectors (RPCs) couples with 2D microwaves carrying signals. Chip operating power is also supplied by 2D microwaves. The RPC is a spiral electrode whose arc length is a quarter of the electromagnetic wavelength. Chip operating power is supplied by 2D microwaves. Sensor chips are connected to the 2DST sheet by RPCs without electrical contacts anywhere on the sheet. Resonance induced at the electrode reduces impedance between the connector and the conductive layer of the 2DST sheet, enabling sensor chips to be connected stably to the sheet. Experimental results on the RPC show the concept to be effective. We fabricated a 1-bit (touch detection) tactile sensor element consisting of a RFID-tag and RPCs, and confirmed in experiments that the sensor element operates in a stretchable 2DST sheet.

A liquid lens-based optical sensor for tactile sensing

“…Therefore, equations ( 12) and (13) show that, as the increase of deflection w 2 , the curvature radius ρ 2 and the focal length f are decreasing, which means that the directional light is gradually focused onto the sensing area of the silicon photocell, and then the output voltage of the silicon photocell is increasing.…”

“…The sensing mechanisms of existed * Author to whom any correspondence should be addressed. tactile sensors mainly contain capacitance [11][12][13], resistance [14,15], piezoelectricity [16,17], optics [18,19], magnetism [20], pneumatic pressure [21,22], and triboelectricity [23][24][25]. Among the above mechanisms, the tactile sensors based on optics have the advantages of simple structure, fast response, high sensitivity, immunity of electromagnetic interference, and low power consumption, and thus have been one of attracting research interests in the domain of tactile perception [26].…”

Detecting Position and Direction of a Device by Swept Frequency of Microwave Using Two-Dimensional Communication System

“…Since the 2DC sheet is thin and soft, it can be easily installed in an everyday environment and to flexible devices [5]. Shinoda et al developed a flexible artificial skin with a 2DC system [6].…”

A Touch Sensing Technique Using the Effects of Extremely Low Frequency Fields on the Human Body

“…Many touch sensing technologies have therefore been developed for commercial purposes. Examples include technologies based on infra-red sensing elements [1,2,3,4], resistive [5,6] and capacitive touch panels [7,8,9], cameras [10], the acoustic and deflection characteristics of touch panels [11,12,13], and others [14,15,16]. One of the widely used techniques is the mutual capacitive method, which is used in almost all smartphones and tablets [17].…”