Highly Twistable Tactile Sensing Array for Humanoid Robot Applications

Autor: Chan-Mo Tsao, 曹展謀
Rok vydání: 2009
Druh dokumentu: 學位論文 ; thesis
Popis: 97
This thesis presents the development of highly-stretchable tactile sensing arrays which can be employed as the artificial skins for bio-mimetic robots. Conventionally, the electrodes of flexible sensing array are vulnerable under highly-deforming and stretching. To address this problem, highly-stretchable spiral electrodes were proposed and developed to increase the reliability of electrodes or interconnects for flexible sensing arrays. In order to cover complex curve surfaces, polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) is used as the base materials for substrates and conductive polymers. Also, the technique of Design of Experiments is adapted to obtain the optimal compositions of conductive polymer with best performance for applications. In addition, a novel method to fabricate a single-piece large-area sensing array has been proposed. The PMMA inner mold and outer mold are machined by using a CNC. Then, the spiral electrodes and sensing elements are implemented on the inner mold. Subsequently, the sensing array can be realized by pouring PDMS pre-polymer into the gap between the inner mold and outer mold. The thickness of the sensing array can be controlled by replacing outer mold. The measurements of sensing forces of the device were carried out. The scanning circuits as well as LabVIEW graphical interface were also developed, and the pressure distribution of artificial skin can be successfully captured.
Databáze: Networked Digital Library of Theses & Dissertations