PFI-RP: Materials and Methods for Scalable Manufacturing of Flexible Resonant Sensors and their Wireless Readers.

该 PFI 项目更广泛的影响/商业化潜力是实现平台传感器技术、柔性谐振传感器的商业化，该技术在消费者、农业和健康市场有许多潜在的应用。 在消费市场，传感器系统可应用于可穿戴技术来监测拉伸和应变，例如高性能运动服。 在农业方面，传感器系统可应用于土壤和水质监测。 在健康方面，传感器系统可应用于监测生物治疗药物的制造和闭合伤口的健康状况。该传感器平台的优点是其无源单元架构（无板载电源）、潜在的低成本以及在封闭系统中测量的能力。该 PFI 将使一个或多个初创公司能够在这些市场空间中成立，从而增加就业机会和经济发展。 此外，该项目还将在跨学科环境中培养 2 名研究生和 10 名本科生，使其具备材料、电子和表征工具方面的技术技能。 由于项目范围和活跃的工业合作伙伴的加入，他们还将获得产品设计、可靠性、稳健性和商业化方面的宝贵创新技能。这些学生特别关注 STEM 领域中代表性不足的学生。拟议的项目解决了所有市场领域通用的谐振传感器商业化所需的属性，即 1) 实现传感器可扩展制造的方法和材料，2) 封装（封装）传感器的材料和方法，以及 3) 定制读取器硬件和分析软件，以降低成本并提高谐振传感器的读取范围。 首先，将开发针对感应共振进行优化的丝网印刷油墨，并将演示大批量（1000 单位）印刷和卷对卷制造方法。其次，将使用谐振传感器评估弹性密封剂和柔性聚合物基板的性能。 第三种，将开发低成本（100 美元）定制读取器，以取代目前使用的更昂贵的便携式矢量网络分析仪，并提高传感器读取范围。 在每个特定领域，将通过我们针对消费者、农业和健康应用的谐振传感器的现有研究计划，在实际最终使用场景中评估性能。 预期的技术成果包括用于柔性谐振传感器制造和封装的最佳材料配方、低成本读取器的硬件规格以及大规模生产传感器和读取器的方法，从而实现商业化。该奖项反映了 NSF 的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The broader impact/commercialization potential of this PFI project is to enable commercialization of a platform sensor technology, flexible resonant sensors, that has many potential applications in consumer, agriculture, and health markets. In the consumer market, the sensor system can be applied to wearable technologies to monitor stretch and strain such as in performance athletic wear. In agriculture, the sensor system can be applied to soil and water quality monitoring. In health, the sensor system can be applied to monitoring of biotherapeutics in manufacturing and health status of closed wounds. Advantages of this sensor platform are its passive unit architecture (no on-board power), potential low cost, and ability to measure in closed systems. This PFI will enable the founding of one or more startups in these market spaces, which will in turn lead to increased employment opportunities and economic development. Moreover, this project will train two graduate students and 10 undergraduates with technical skills in materials, electronics, and characterizations tools in an interdisciplinary environment. They will also receive valuable innovation skills in product design, reliability, robustness, and commercialization due to the project scope and inclusion of active industrial partners. These students with special attention to those underrepresented in STEM fields.The proposed project addresses attributes needed to commercialize resonant sensors that are common to all market sectors, namely 1) the methods and materials to enable scalable fabrication of the sensors, 2) the materials and methods to encapsulate (package) the sensors, and 3) custom reader hardware and analysis software to lower the cost and improve read range of the resonant sensor. For the first, screen-printable inks that are optimized for inductive resonance will be developed and large-batch (1000 unit) methods of printing and roll to roll fabrication will be demonstrated. For the second, elastomeric encapsulants and flexible, polymeric substrates will be evaluated for their performance with resonant sensors. In the third, a low-cost ($100) custom reader will be developed to supplant the more expensive portable vector network analyzers currently in use and to improve sensor read range. In each of these specific areas, performance will be assessed in actual end-use scenarios through existing research programs we have on resonant sensors for consumer, agriculture, and health applications. The anticipated technical results include optimal material formulations for flexible resonant sensor fabrication and packaging, hardware specifications for low-cost readers, and methods to produce the sensors and readers at large scale, thus enabling commercialization entry.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.