Integrated intelligent tactile system for a humanoid robot

Tactile perception is the basis of human motion. Achieving artificial tactility is one of the challenges in the fields of smart robotics and artificial intelligence (AI), because touch emulation relies on high-performance pressure sensor arrays, signal reading, information processing, and feedback control. In this paper, we report an integrated intelligent tactile system (IITS) that is integrated with a humanoid robot to achieve human-like artificial tactile perception. The IITS is a closed-loop system that includes a multi-channel tactile sensing e-skin, a data acquisition and information processing chip, and a feedback control. With customized preset values of threshold pressures, the IITS-integrated robot can flexibly grasp various objects. The IITS has potential applications in the design of prosthetic hands, space manipulators, deep-sea exploration robots, and human-robot interactions.