title: The Design and Characterization of a Flexible Tactile Sensing Array for Robot Skin.
abstract: In this study, a flexible tactile sensing array based on a capacitive mechanism was designed, fabricated, and characterized for sensitive robot skin. A device with 8 × 8 sensing units was composed of top and bottom flexible polyethyleneterephthalate (PET) substrates with copper (Cu) electrodes, a polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) dielectric layer, and a bump contact layer. Four types of microstructures (i.e., pyramids and V-shape grooves) atop a PDMS dielectric layer were well-designed and fabricated to enhance tactile sensitivity. The optimal sensing unit achieved a high sensitivity of 35.9%/N in a force range of 0-1 N. By incorporating a tactile feedback control system, the flexible sensing array as the sensitive skin of a robotic manipulator demonstrated a potential capability of robotic obstacle avoidance.
authors.affiliation: School of Mechanical and Electric Engineering, Collaborative Innovation Center of Suzhou Nano Science and Technology, Jiangsu Provincial Key Laboratory of Advanced Robotics, Soochow University, Suzhou 215000, China. jizhangping@foxmail.com.
authors.forename: Zhangping
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Ji
authors.affiliation: School of Mechanical and Electric Engineering, Collaborative Innovation Center of Suzhou Nano Science and Technology, Jiangsu Provincial Key Laboratory of Advanced Robotics, Soochow University, Suzhou 215000, China. t_zhuhui@suda.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Hui
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Zhu
authors.affiliation: School of Mechanical and Electric Engineering, Collaborative Innovation Center of Suzhou Nano Science and Technology, Jiangsu Provincial Key Laboratory of Advanced Robotics, Soochow University, Suzhou 215000, China. hcliu078@suda.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Huicong
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: School of Mechanical and Electric Engineering, Collaborative Innovation Center of Suzhou Nano Science and Technology, Jiangsu Provincial Key Laboratory of Advanced Robotics, Soochow University, Suzhou 215000, China. Liunan@suda.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Nan
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: School of Mechanical and Electric Engineering, Collaborative Innovation Center of Suzhou Nano Science and Technology, Jiangsu Provincial Key Laboratory of Advanced Robotics, Soochow University, Suzhou 215000, China. chent@suda.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Tao
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: School of Mechanical and Electric Engineering, Collaborative Innovation Center of Suzhou Nano Science and Technology, Jiangsu Provincial Key Laboratory of Advanced Robotics, Soochow University, Suzhou 215000, China. yangzhan@suda.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Zhan
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.affiliation: School of Mechanical and Electric Engineering, Collaborative Innovation Center of Suzhou Nano Science and Technology, Jiangsu Provincial Key Laboratory of Advanced Robotics, Soochow University, Suzhou 215000, China. lnsun@suda.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Lining
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Sun
mesh_terms: D004129:Dimethylpolysiloxanes / Q000737:chemistry; D004566:Electrodes; D004867:Equipment Design; D006801:Humans; D011093:Polyethylene Terephthalates / Q000737:chemistry; D012371:Robotics / Q000295:instrumentation*; D012867:Skin
chemical_list: D004129:Dimethylpolysiloxanes; D011093:Polyethylene Terephthalates; C013830:baysilon
keywords: capacitive tactile sensing array; flexible electronics; robot skin; robotic obstacle avoidance