Additively Manufactured Flexible EGaIn Sensor for Dynamic Detection and Sensing on Ultra-Curved Surfaces

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Robotics
• Biomedical Engineering

Background:

• Electronic skin is crucial for health monitoring, robot tactile perception, and bionic prosthetics.
• Existing electronic skin technologies face challenges in miniaturization and performance on curved surfaces.

Purpose of the Study:

• To fabricate millimeter-scale electronic skin with compact sensing units.
• To evaluate the performance of the electronic skin on ultra-curved surfaces.
• To demonstrate the application of electronic skin in an artificial nose system.

Main Methods:

• Utilized Boston Micro Fabrication S130 for high-precision additive manufacturing.
• Employed a template removal method with gallium-based liquid metal.
• Achieved an inner channel diameter of 0.1 mm for sensing units measuring 3 × 3 mm².

Main Results:

• The electronic skin demonstrated a wide linear sensing range (10-22,000 Pa) and high-pressure resolution (10 Pa).
• Effective performance was confirmed on an ultra-curved surface with a 6 mm radius of curvature.
• Successful detection of sliding at speeds of 8-54 mm/s.
• An artificial nose with nine sensing units showed excellent multitouch and sliding trajectory recognition.

Conclusions:

• The fabricated millimeter-scale electronic skin functions effectively on ultra-curved surfaces.
• The technology shows promise for advanced applications in robotics and health monitoring.
• The compact and high-performance sensing units pave the way for next-generation electronic skin devices.