Monitoring of human dynamics by a flexible and comfortable polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) sensor

Abstract

With the increasing demand for self-adaptive electronics, stretchable and conformable sensors with high sensitivity, stretchability, and self-adhesive are significant intelligent devices. Here a novel tactile sensor is demonstrated that maintains conformal contact to the object for efficient movement monitoring. The device, which was composed of the “H” well-manicured thermoplastic elastomer (TPE), a rectangular polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) film coupled with a silver electrode and clamped into the copper-clad signal line ends, and a “U” shaped super-elastic silica gel layer, provided satisfactory performance. The device was investigated as a dynamic monitoring sensor due to its stretchable and conformal configuration. The mechanical stability and high sensitivity suggested that, when attached to the skin of participants, the sensor detected motion induced strain which was experimentally demonstrated. The results show that the novel biomimetic sensor is effective in monitoring human dynamics, with an accuracy exceeding than 98.3%. The stretchable and conformable sensor is low-cost and nontoxic with potential applications in clinical, conformal detection, and artificial intelligence.