Towards scalable soft e-skin: Flexible event-based tactile-sensors using wireless sensor elements embedded in soft elastomer
Towards scalable soft e-skin: Flexible event-based tactile-sensors using wireless sensor elements embedded in soft elastomer
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DOI：
10.1109/biorob49111.2020.9224353
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发表时间：
2020-11
期刊：
影响因子：
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通讯作者：
Ariel Slepyan;N. Thakor
中科院分区：
文献类型：
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作者：
Ariel Slepyan;N. Thakor
可扩展的高密度电子皮肤（e-skin）是触觉感测的期望目标。然而，这一目标的实现一直是难以捉摸的，由于目前的触觉传感器所遭受的空间和时间分辨率之间的权衡。此外，随着触觉感测网格变得很大，布线变得难以管理，并且需要无线方法。在这项工作中，一个可扩展的，基于事件的，被动触觉传感系统，提出了基于射频识别（RFID）技术。研制了一种具有19个压力传感器的RFID触觉传感手。出租车是无线读取使用一个单一的“手形”RFID天线。通过将RFID芯片与其天线断开连接并将芯片和天线嵌入软弹性体中，在RFID芯片与其天线之间引入气隙，每个RFID标签被转换成压力传感器。当压力事件发生时，RFID芯片接触其天线并接收电力并与RFID读取器通信。因此，传感器被转换成基于仿生事件的传感器，其响应仅在使用时被激活。此外，这项工作证明了构建基于事件的，可以无线读取的被动传感网格的可行性。未来的触觉传感电子皮肤可以利用这种方法变得可扩展和密集，同时保持高的时间分辨率。此外，这种方法可以应用于触觉传感之外，用于开发任何模态的可扩展和高密度传感器。
Scalable, high-density electronic skins (e-skins) are a desirable goal of tactile sensing. However, a realization of this goal has been elusive due to the trade-off between spatial and temporal resolution that current tactile sensors suffer from. Additionally, as tactile sensing grids become large, wiring becomes unmanageable, and there is a need for a wireless approach. In this work, a scalable, event-based, passive tactile sensing system is proposed that is based on radio-frequency identification (RFID) technology. An RFID-based tactile sensing hand is developed with 19 pressure sensing taxels. The taxels are read wirelessly using a single ‘hand-shaped’ RFID antenna. Each RFID tag is transformed into a pressure sensor by disconnecting the RFID chip from its antenna and embedding the chip and antenna into soft elastomer with an air gap introduced between the RFID chip and its antenna. When a pressure event occurs, the RFID chip contacts its antenna and receives power and communicates with the RFID reader. Thus, the sensor is transformed into a biomimetic event-based sensor, whose response is activated only when used. Further, this work demonstrates the feasibility of constructing event-based, passive sensing grids that can be read wirelessly. Future tactile sensing e-skins can utilize this approach to become scalable and dense, while retaining high temporal resolution. Moreover, this approach can be applied beyond tactile sensing, for the development of scalable and high-density sensors of any modality.