A Deformable Foam-Layered Triboelectric Tactile Sensor with Adjustable Dynamic Range

Abstract

The triboelectric effect utilizes the electric potential of materials to generate an electrical output through electrostatic induction between the two oppositely charged surfaces, which grants them unique self-powered characteristics. By utilizing this effect, self-powered tactile sensors have been studied in the previous researches. However, the conventional triboelectric tactile sensors have drawbacks of limited dynamic range due to the decreasing sensitivity under increased applied pressures. Owing to this disadvantage, the triboelectric tactile sensor has not been extensively employed in smart manufacturing applications where a consistently high sensitivity within the dynamic range is preferred. In order to address this issue, a lightweight, compact, bio-friendly and highly sensitive self-powered triboelectric tactile sensor has been investigated based on the triboelectric effect. By integration of deformable foam layer, triboelectric tactile sensor is able to shift the dynamic range by 76–98 kPa without having to employ gain adjustment circuit board or modifying the properties of the sensor (geometric, materials, etc.). The proposed tactile sensor can be employed in various smart manufacturing applications in which light, self-powered, and high-performance tactile sensors are required to reduce the weight and energy consumption.