A non-array customizable tactile sensor based on spraying process

Abstract

Purpose

The tactile sensor with array structure normally has the defects of existing nondetection zone, complex and nonstretchable structure. It is difficult to seamlessly attach to the surface of the robot. For this reason, this paper proposes a method to prepare nonarray structure tactile sensor directly on the surface of the robot by spraying process.

Design/methodology/approach

Based on the principle of gradient potential distribution, the potential fields are constructed in two different directions over the conductive film in time-sharing. The potentials at touching position in the two directions are detected to determine the coordinate of the touching point. The designed tactile sensor based on this principle consists of only three layers. Its bottom layer is designed as a weak conductive film made of graphite coating and used to construct the potential field. It can be sprayed either on PET substrate or directly on robot surface.

Findings

The radial basis function neural network is used for remodeling the potential distribution, which can effectively solve the problem of nonlinear potential distribution caused by irregular sensor shape, and uneven conductivity at different points of the spraying coating. The simulation and experimental results show that the principle of the proposed tactile sensor used for touching position detection is feasible to be applied to complex surfaces of the robot.

Originality/value

This paper proposed a nonarray customizable tactile sensor based on the spraying process. The sensor has a simple structure, and only five lead wires are needed to realize the coordinate detection of the touch position.

Citation

Wu, D., Wang, D., Yang, D., Jinhua, Y. and Wu, H. (2022), "A non-array customizable tactile sensor based on spraying process", Sensor Review, Vol. 42 No. 4, pp. 412-427. https://doi.org/10.1108/SR-11-2021-0412