SBIR Phase I: Multimodal Tactical Sensing for Consumer electronics & Neuroprosthetics

该项目更广泛的影响/商业潜力集中在不断增长的多点触摸传感器上，预计到2024年将达到940亿美元。触屏确实允许我们在指尖上访问虚拟世界及其功能，并使那些键盘文盲能够通过这种自然界面访问庞大的万维网功能。一种无处不在的低成本多点触控传感技术将通过提高运动技能和潜在地消除装有神经义肢的截肢者的幻痛，对消费电子产品产生更广泛的影响。随着数字世界越来越紧密地联系在一起，并以移动物联网、自动驾驶汽车和其他无线连接智能技术的形式继续渗透到我们的物理世界，降低采用设备与人之间交互的成本障碍和便利性非常重要。如果一个社会能够让所有成员，从年轻人到老年人，都能轻松地使用联网的辅助设备，那么它将增加人们获得信息、教育和电子商务的机会，从而实现更快的经济增长。这个小企业创新研究（SBIR）第一阶段项目旨在展示在平面或曲面上无处不在的多点触摸和力传感，这些表面要么是导电的（金属），要么是绝缘体（玻璃/塑料）。目前的多点触摸传感技术仅限于透明、绝缘和平面表面。这些技术包括在玻璃或聚酰胺基板上绘制多层半透明薄膜，然后在复杂的制造过程中与显示器集成。电影吗?半透明的性质降低了显示图像的质量，需要增加显示亮度，影响移动设备的电池寿命。高制造成本降低了部署，从而限制了进入更广泛的消费社会。这个项目的目标是开发一种低成本的技术，可以检测任何表面上的多触点的力和位置，而不需要薄膜图案。所提出的技术的成功执行和部署将增加多点触摸和力传感在消费电子产品中的部署，从而在社会上获得更广泛的应用。将评估利用该技术进行科学研究和最终用户价值的新机会，用于下肢装配以减少幻肢痛和神经义肢作为潜在的感觉反馈。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值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/commercial potential of this project focuses on the growing multipoint touch sensors estimated at US $94B in 2024. Touch screens literally allowed access to the virtual world and its capabilities at our fingertips and enabled those who were keyboard illiterates to access the vast world wide web capabilities through this natural interface. A ubiquitous cost effective multipoint touch sensing technology would make a broader impact beyond consumer electronics by improving motor skills and potentially eliminating phantom pain for amputees fitted with neuro prosthetics limbs. As the digital world becomes more connected and continues to permeate our physical world in the form of the mobile Internet of Things, autonomous cars, and other wireless connected smart technologies, it is important to reduce the cost barrier for adoption and ease of interaction between the device and the human. A society that can enable all its members, youngsters to aging elders, to easily interface with connected assistive devices would have increased access to information, education, ecommerce and consequently will see faster economic growth. This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project aims at demonstrating a ubiquitous multipoint touch and force sensing on planar or curved surfaces that are either conducting (metals) or insulators (glass/plastic). Current multipoint touch sensing technologies are limited to transparent, insulating and planar surfaces. These technologies involve patterning multiple layers of semitransparent films on a glass or polyamide substrate then integrated with the display in a complex manufacturing process. The films? semitransparent nature reduces the quality of the display image and requires increasing the display brightness which affects the battery life in mobile devices. The high manufacturing cost reduces deployment and hence limits access to the wider consumer society. This project targets developing a low-cost technology that detects force and location of multi touch points on any surface without film patterning. Successful execution and deployment of the proposed technology would increase deployment of multipoint touch and force sensing in consumer electronics and hence a broader access in the society. New opportunities for utilizing the technology both for scientific investigation as well as for end user value will evaluated for lower limb fitting to reduce phantom pain and in neuro prosthetics as a potential sensory feedback.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.