I-Corps: Stretchable Lightguides for Multimodal Sensing

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The broader impact/commercial potential of this I-Corps project is the development of multifunctional, stretchable sensors. These sensors may be used to measure deformations such as pressing, stretching and bending. When integrated into garments or clothes, they may have an impact in a variety of different industries. For example, in the fitness wearables market, they may be used to measure muscle fatigue and to monitor muscle growth over time, in the healthcare market they may be used as bed sheets to prevent pressure ulcers. In the virtual reality/augmented reality the sensors may be used to improve training by measuring contact forces as well as offering motion tracking, and in the automotive industry as part of car seats to monitor in-vehicle passenger behavior as well as to indicate child presence in the car. Finally, in robotics industry the stretchable sensors may give robots the sense of touch. This I-Corps project is based on the development of multifunctional stretchable sensors termed Stretchable Lightguides for Multimodal Sensing (SLIMS). SLIMS technology improves the functionalities of a single stretchable sensor by using an optical approach. By using intensity and chromaticity changes of wavelengths throughout a broad spectrum input, these sensors can differentiate the mode of a mechanical deformation such as stretching, pressing and bending, as well as detect the magnitude and location of such deformations. Since these sensors are soft and rely on photonics, rather than electronics as the sensing modality, they are washable and insensitive to electromagnetic interference unlike their competitors. SLIMS’ ability to decouple complex deformations has been demonstrated through integration on a wireless 3D printed glove, where each finger has one SLIMS. The glow (signal) was able to reconstruct in real time the three joint angles on the finger as well as simultaneously detect the location and force of external pressure on the finger.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.