Biomimetic Tactile Sensor

The performance of prosthetic hands and robotic manipulators is severely limited by their having little or no tactile information compared to the human hand. Technologies such as MEMS, microfluidics, and nanoparticles have been used to produce arrays of force sensors, but these are generally not robust enough to mount on curved, deformable finger pads or to use in environments that include dust, fluids, sharp edges and wide temperature swings. Furthermore, it is not clear how the prosthetic controller will use the tactile information, so it is difficult to generate specifications for these sensors.