Morphological Fabrication of Rubber Cutaneous Receptors Embedded in a Stretchable Skin-Mimicking Human Tissue by the Utilization of Hybrid Fluid

• Published in: Sensors (Basel, Switzerland) Vol. 21; no. 20; p. 6834
• Main Authors: Shimada, Kunio, Ikeda, Ryo, Kikura, Hiroshige, Takahashi, Hideharu
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Basel MDPI AG 14.10.2021; MDPI
• Subjects: Aqueous solutions; Automation; cutaneous receptors; Electrolytic cells; electrolytic polymerization; Haptic interfaces; Human tissues; Intelligence; Kerosene; Magnetic fields; Manufacturing engineering; mimesis; Morphology; Pacinian corpuscles; Polyvinyl alcohol; Robotics; Rubber; sensor; Sensors; Shearing; Skin; Sodium; Surfactants; Vulcanization; Japan
• ISSN: 1424-8220; 1424-8220
• DOI: 10.3390/s21206834

Sensors are essential in the haptic technology of soft robotics, which includes the technology of humanoids. Haptic sensors can be simulated by the mimetic organ of perceptual cells in the human body. However, there has been little research on the morphological fabrication of cutaneous receptors embedded in a human skin tissue utilizing artificial materials. In the present study, we fabricated artificial, cell-like cutaneous receptors embedded in skin tissue mimicking human skin structure by utilizing rubber. We addressed the fabrication of five cutaneous receptors (free nerve endings, Krause and bulbs, Meissner corpuscles, Pacinian corpuscles and Ruffini endings). In addition, we investigated the effectiveness of the fabricated tissue for mechanical and thermal sensing. At first, in the production of integrated artificial skin tissue, we proposed a novel magnetic, responsive, intelligent, hybrid fluid (HF), which is suitable for developing the hybrid rubber skin. Secondly, we presented the fabrication by utilizing not only the HF rubber but our previously proposed rubber vulcanization and adhesion techniques with electrolytic polymerization. Thirdly, we conducted a mechanical and thermal sensing touch experiment with the finger. As a result, it demonstrated that intelligence as a mechanoreceptor or thermoreceptor depends on its fabric: the HF rubber sensor mimicked Krause and bulbs has the thermal and pressing sensibility, and the one mimicked Ruffini endings the shearing sensibility.