Skin-inspired textile-based tactile sensors enable multifunctional sensing of wearables and soft robots

Multifunctional tactile sensors that can mimic the sensory capabilities of human skin to perceive various external static and dynamic stimuli are essential to interact with the environment and humans for wearable electronics and soft intelligent robotics. Here, inspired by human skin, we report a textile-based tactile sensor capable of multifunctional sensing for personalized healthcare monitoring and soft robotic control. The tactile sensor consists of a triboelectric nanogenerator sensing layer to mimic the function of fast adapting (FA) mechanoreceptors and a piezoresistive sensing layer to achieve the functionality of slow adapting (SA) mechanoreceptors. The tactile sensor has been demonstrated to be able to recognize voice and monitor physiological signals and human motions in a real-time manner. Combined with a machine learning framework, the tactile sensor is able to percept surface textures and material types with high accuracy. It is also demonstrated as an effective human-machine interface for the control of assistive robotics.