Flexible Capacitive Pressure Sensor Based on an Embedded Rib Fabric With a Bionic Sloping Petal Structure

Abstract

High-performance flexible pressure sensors play an important role in the field of human body detection and human–computer interaction. This study proposes a new low-cost capacitive sensor that can achieve high sensitivity and stability over a wide range of tactile pressures (0–80 kPa). In addition, the nanowires were deposited into a flexible fabric that is embedded in polydimethylsiloxane to form a hydrophilic and hydrophobic layered electrode layer. The multilayer fiber structure of the rib fabric ensures good electrical conductivity. The sensitivity of the sensor that is made from the slanted bionic microstructure is seven times that of the dielectric layer without the microstructure. The measured response recovery time (13.4 ms) is suitable for real-time dynamic monitoring. Because a small temperature has little impact on the sensor, the sensor can be widely used in close-fitting wearable devices. It can also quickly identify the bending movement of the finger joints, as well as the finger pressure. Meanwhile, the sensor shows excellent stability and can withstand more than 7,000 load/unload cycle tests. This sensor has broad application prospects such as human health, motion monitoring, and human-computer interaction control.