Large-area flexible MWCNT/PDMS pressure sensor for ergonomic design with aid of deep learning

Abstract

The achievement of well-performing pressure sensors with low pressure detection, high sensitivity, large-scale integration, and effective analysis of the subsequent data remains a major challenge in the development of flexible piezoresistive sensors. In this study, a simple and extendable sensor preparation strategy was proposed to fabricate flexible sensors on the basis of multiwalled carbon nanotube/polydimethylsiloxane (MWCNT/PDMS) composites. A dispersant of tetrahydrofuran (THF) was added to solve the agglomeration of MWCNTs in PDMS, and the resistance of the obtained MWCNT/PDMS conductive unit with 7.5 wt.% MWCNTs were as low as 180 Ω/hemisphere. Sensitivity (0.004 kPa−1), excellent response stability, fast response time (36 ms), and excellent electromechanical properties were demonstrated within the pressure range from 0 kPa to 100 kPa. A large-area flexible sensor with 8×10 pixels was successfully adopted to detect the pressure distribution on the human back and to verify its applicability. Combining the sensor array with deep learning, inclination of human sitting was easily recognized with high accuracy, indicating that the combined technology can be used to guide ergonomic design.

AI-Driven Sensing Technology: Review

“…Additionally, human posture inclination can be identified by combining flexible pressure sensors and neural networks. Initially, large-area flexible pressure sensors collect data from the human back [Figure 3d]; these pressure data are then input into a pre-trained neural network [Figure 3e] that determines the body's inclination based on the input pressure data [Figure 3f], with recognition accuracies ranging from 0.94 to 0.98 for five postures [105].…”

Flexible PANI/Lotus Stemmed Fiber Sensor for Bifunctional Sensing of Physical and Chemical Stimuli

“…Traditional flexible substrates such as plastics and rubbers are not recyclable, difficult to combine well with living organisms, and have a high secondary hazard to the environment, limiting the further development and utilization. [19][20][21] Natural fiber and synthetic fiber fabrics are extensible materials with high permeability, low cost, light weight, abundant surface groups, good softness, easy to stretch and compress, and have been used extensively as a flexible substrate for various wearable electronic devices. [22][23][24][25][26] In recent years, the research of flexible wearable sensors based on natural degradable fibers has been attracting considerable attention.…”