Programmable and Ultrasensitive Haptic Interfaces Enabling Closed‐Loop Human–Machine Interactions

Abstract

Intuitive, efficient, and unconstrained interactions require human–machine interfaces (HMIs) to accurately recognize users' manipulation intents. Susceptibility to interference and conditional usage mode of HMIs will lead to poor experiences that limit their great interaction potential. Herein, a programmable and ultrasensitive haptic interface enabling closed‐loop human–machine interactions is reported. A cross‐scale architecture design strategy is proposed to fabricate the haptic interface, which optimizes the hierarchical contact process. The synergistic optimization of the cross‐scale architecture between carbon nanotubes and the multiscale sensing structure realizes a haptic interface with ultrahigh sensitivity and a wide detection range of 15.1 kPa−1 and 180 kPa, which are improved by more than 900% over the performance of the common interface. The rapid response time of <5 ms and the limit of detection of 8 Pa of the haptic interface far surpass the somatosensory perception of human skin, which enables the haptic interface to accurately recognize interactive intents. A wireless pressure‐data interactive glove (wireless PDI glove) is designed and realizes a round‐the‐clock operation, noise immunity, and efficient interactive control, which perfectly compensate for the flaws of typical vision and voice recognition modes.

Simultaneous Optimization of Sensitivity and Linearity for Flexible Pressure Sensor via Coupling Effect between Microstructures and Flat Substrate Component

“…We also compared the sensing performance of our proposed piezoresistive sensor with other reported literature results, as shown in Figure g (the detailed sensitivity and the corresponding linearity range as well as the employed materials are listed in Table ). With the simultaneously realized high sensitivity and ultrawide linearity range, our proposed sensor is competitive with these state-of-the-art reported sensors. ,,,− ,− It is worthwhile to note that the optimized sensing performance of our proposed sensor originated from the codeformation of the piezoresistive layer with the coupling effect of elastic modulus and conductivity. Such a unique mechanism avoids the high dependence on the complex design of materials and structures.…”

Two-Stage Micropyramids Enhanced Flexible Piezoresistive Sensor for Health Monitoring and Human–Computer Interaction

“…The rapid development of flexible and wearable electronics enables innovations in the fields of health monitoring, 1,2 medical diagnostics, 3 electronic skin, 4,5 human−computer interaction, 6,7 and soft robotics. 8,9 Flexible pressure sensors, which can transform external pressure into electrical signals, are an indispensable branch of flexible electronics.…”

“…The rapid development of flexible and wearable electronics enables innovations in the fields of health monitoring, , medical diagnostics, electronic skin, , human–computer interaction, , and soft robotics. , Flexible pressure sensors, which can transform external pressure into electrical signals, are an indispensable branch of flexible electronics. Based on distinct sensing mechanisms, flexible pressure sensors are mainly categorized as piezoresistive, − piezoelectric, capacitive, , triboelectric, , and magnetoelectric, among which piezoresistive pressure sensors have drawn extensive focus due to their simple structure, wide range of material choices, and ease of preparation .…”

Improving the Resolution of Flexible Large-Area Tactile Sensors through Machine-Learning Perception

“…Inspired by human skin, more and more researchers are working to prepare flexible tactile arrays with skin-like functionality to meet the needs of robotic mechanical claw grip state sensing − and have achieved perception capabilities far beyond skin. − Over the past decade, tactile array sensors have been extensively developed by utilizing different sensing mechanisms, such as resistive-, − capacitive-, − and piezoelectric-type mechanisms. − Among them, piezoresistive tactile sensors have become a focus of research due to their high load capacity, low mass production cost, low noise, and high tactile sensitivity. − Recently, advances in various functional materials, − structural designs, ,− fabrication methods, − and signal processing technologies − have further accelerated the development of tactile array sensors, which now enable pressure detection beyond the limits of the skin and ultrawide pressure monitoring ranges. However, some inherent characteristics of array-type tactile sensors limit their application in practical applications.…”