Large-area, untethered, metamorphic, and omnidirectionally stretchable multiplexing self-powered triboelectric skins

Large-area, untethered, metamorphic, and omnidirectionally stretchable multiplexing self-powered triboelectric skins

09 February 2024 | Beibei Shao, Ming-Han Lu, Tai-Chen Wu, Wei-Chen Peng, Tien-Yu Ko, Yung-Chi Hsiao, Jiann-Yeu Chen, Baoquan Sun, Ruiyuan Liu, Ying-Chih Lai
This article presents a novel large-area, untethered, metamorphic, and omnidirectionally stretchable multiplexing self-powered triboelectric electronic skin (UTE-skin) with an ultralow misrecognition rate of 0.20%. The UTE-skin is designed to address the challenges of large-area multiplexing sensing arrays in haptic sensing and next-generation electronics. The key innovation lies in the development of an omnidirectionally stretchable carbon black-Ecoflex composite-based shielding layer that effectively attenuates electrostatic interference from wirings, ensuring low-level noise in sensing matrices. The UTE-skin operates reliably under extreme strains (100% uniaxial, 100% biaxial, and 400% isotropic), achieving high-quality pressure imaging and multi-touch real-time visualization. It is demonstrated for use in smart gloves for tactile recognition, intelligent insoles for gait analysis, and deformable human-machine interfaces. The UTE-skin is fabricated using compliant electronic materials, including elastomeric Ecoflex as a stretchable triboelectric layer and matrix, elastic carbon black-doped Ecoflex as a shielding layer, electrodes, and electrical interconnect. The shielding layer effectively eliminates misrecognition between sensing nodes and internal connecting wiring, ensuring the stability, accuracy, and repeatability of the e-skin. The UTE-skin is also highly stretchable and elastic, with a low Young’s modulus, allowing for good biomechanical interactions with soft skin. The shielding layer is composed of a conductive composite of carbon black and Ecoflex, which provides effective electrostatic interference screening. The UTE-skin demonstrates exceptional mechanical robustness, with the ability to endure various extreme mechanical manipulations, including folding, crumpling, twisting, and stretching. The shielding layer is designed to suppress misrecognition by modulating the conductivity of the elastic shielding layer through the carbon black content in the Ecoflex elastomer. The UTE-skin is also shown to have high electrical performance, with the ability to generate high voltage and current signals in response to applied pressures. The UTE-skin is demonstrated for use in a variety of applications, including smart gloves, intelligent insoles, and deformable human-machine interfaces. The proposed scheme and device are promising cornerstones of scalable untethered multiplexing self-powered e-skins, which are highly desired in practical applications, including haptics, human-device interfaces, medical care/assistance, and human-like/robotic perception.This article presents a novel large-area, untethered, metamorphic, and omnidirectionally stretchable multiplexing self-powered triboelectric electronic skin (UTE-skin) with an ultralow misrecognition rate of 0.20%. The UTE-skin is designed to address the challenges of large-area multiplexing sensing arrays in haptic sensing and next-generation electronics. The key innovation lies in the development of an omnidirectionally stretchable carbon black-Ecoflex composite-based shielding layer that effectively attenuates electrostatic interference from wirings, ensuring low-level noise in sensing matrices. The UTE-skin operates reliably under extreme strains (100% uniaxial, 100% biaxial, and 400% isotropic), achieving high-quality pressure imaging and multi-touch real-time visualization. It is demonstrated for use in smart gloves for tactile recognition, intelligent insoles for gait analysis, and deformable human-machine interfaces. The UTE-skin is fabricated using compliant electronic materials, including elastomeric Ecoflex as a stretchable triboelectric layer and matrix, elastic carbon black-doped Ecoflex as a shielding layer, electrodes, and electrical interconnect. The shielding layer effectively eliminates misrecognition between sensing nodes and internal connecting wiring, ensuring the stability, accuracy, and repeatability of the e-skin. The UTE-skin is also highly stretchable and elastic, with a low Young’s modulus, allowing for good biomechanical interactions with soft skin. The shielding layer is composed of a conductive composite of carbon black and Ecoflex, which provides effective electrostatic interference screening. The UTE-skin demonstrates exceptional mechanical robustness, with the ability to endure various extreme mechanical manipulations, including folding, crumpling, twisting, and stretching. The shielding layer is designed to suppress misrecognition by modulating the conductivity of the elastic shielding layer through the carbon black content in the Ecoflex elastomer. The UTE-skin is also shown to have high electrical performance, with the ability to generate high voltage and current signals in response to applied pressures. The UTE-skin is demonstrated for use in a variety of applications, including smart gloves, intelligent insoles, and deformable human-machine interfaces. The proposed scheme and device are promising cornerstones of scalable untethered multiplexing self-powered e-skins, which are highly desired in practical applications, including haptics, human-device interfaces, medical care/assistance, and human-like/robotic perception.
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