Scientists have invented a soft artificial skin that can provide tactile feedback signals to the human body. In addition, it has a complex self-sensing mechanism, so it can instantly adapt to the wearer's movement. The artificial skin can be used in fields such as medical rehabilitation and virtual reality. Just like our hearing and vision, our sense of touch plays an important role in our perception and interaction with the world around us. Technology that can duplicate our sense of touch (also known as tactile feedback) can be used in human-machine interfaces for medical rehabilitation and virtual reality applications.

  Scientists from the reconfigurable robot laboratory led by Jamie Paik and the soft bio-electronic interface laboratory led by StéphanieLacour of the Institute of Engineering have jointly developed a soft artificial skin consisting of silicone and electrodes. Both laboratories are part of the NCCR robot program.

  The soft sensor and actuator system of skin can adapt the artificial skin to the actual shape of the wearer's wrist and provide tactile feedback in the form of pressure and vibration. Strain sensors continuously measure skin deformation so that tactile feedback can be adjusted in real time to produce as realistic a tactile sensation as possible. The work of scientists has just been published on impurities in soft robots.

  This is the first time that a completely soft artificial skin has been developed, in which sensors and actuators are integrated. This provides us with closed-loop control, which means that we can accurately and reliably adjust the vibration stimulus felt by the user. This is an ideal choice for wearable applications, such as testing a patient's proprioception in medical applications.

  Artificial skin contains soft pneumatic actuators and a membrane layer. Pumping air into the membrane layer can expand the membrane layer. When the membrane layer expands and contracts rapidly, the skin will vibrate. The sensor layer is located on top of the film layer and contains a soft electrode made of a liquid-solid gallium mixture. These electrodes continuously measure skin deformation and send data to the microcontroller, which uses this feedback to fine tune the sensation transmitted to the wearer in response to the wearer's movements and changes in external factors.

  Artificial skin can be stretched to four times its original length, stretching times as long as one million times. This makes it particularly attractive for many practical applications. At present, scientists have tested the user's finger and are still improving the technology. The next step will be to develop a fully wearable prototype flexible skin, which will be used in medical rehabilitation and virtual reality technology. Flexible PCB supplier china think，the prototype will also be tested in neuroscience research and can be used to stimulate the human body while researchers study dynamic brain activity through magnetic resonance experiments.