Researchers at the National University of Singapore (NUS) have developed a smart foam that acts as a "skin" for robots, imitating the sense of touch, enabling perception of nearby objects without touching, and repairing itself when damaged, like human skin.
AiFoam. Photo: National University of Singapore
AiFoam. Photo: National University of Singapore
Artificially innervated foam, or AiFoam, is a soft, spongy polymer created by blending fluoropolymer with a surface tension-lowering compound, allowing the highly elasticated material - which can stretch to 230% of its original size - to easily fuse back together when cut into pieces.
The "healing" process involved heating the cut material to 70°C over four days, which allowed it to heal by 70% and still be stretched to 180% of its original size.
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"We want to show that it is possible to replicate the human sense of touch in a robot, which opens up a new paradigm in the interaction between man and machine for future applications," said lead researcher Assistant Professor Benjamin Tee, of the NUS Department of Materials Science and Engineering.
Assistant Professor Benjamin Tee (left) and doctoral student Guo Hongchen hold up a piece of AiFoam. Photo: National University of Singapore
Assistant Professor Benjamin Tee (left) and doctoral student Guo Hongchen hold up a piece of AiFoam. Photo: National University of Singapore
"There are many applications for such a material, especially in robotics and prosthetic devices, where robots need to be a lot more intelligent when working around humans," he added.
In order to mimic the human sense of touch, the material was infused with microscopic particles of metal and tiny electrodes were placed beneath the foam's surface.
When pressure is applied the metal particles are drawn closer together within the polymer, thus changed their electrical properties. The electrodes, which are connected to a computer, then detect these changes, and the robot receives instructions on what to do, Tee said.
"When I move my finger near the sensor, you can see the sensor is measuring the changes of my electrical field and responds accordingly to my touch," he said.
The technology enables the detection of the amount and direction of applied force giving robots the potential to become more intelligent and interactive as well as making robotic motion smoother, faster and more predictable.
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Tee said that AiFoam is the first material of its kind, combining pressure and proximity testing with self-healing properties.
After two years spent developing the technology, the researchers aim to have it put to practical use within the next five years and the team says it is exploring partnerships with robotics firms "to enable more seamless interactions between humans and machines".
"It can also allow prosthetic users to have more intuitive use of their robotic arms when grabbing objects," he said.
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