Like it or not, your next co-worker could be a robot. Today, more people find themselves working alongside autonomous machines. These devices are ideal for completing tasks ranging from sorting items to conducting surgeries. As such, there’s a strong demand to broaden the range of senses, enabling these devices to understand their environment better.
Robots that can feel and manipulate items like a human hand are on their way. Recently, a group of Empa engineers took the concept of robots that can feel a step further. Here’s everything you need to know about how ceramic could be the key to creating robots that can feel temperature, touch, pressure, and more.
Smart Ceramics StudyZ
The study “Sensor-Embedded Muscle for Closed-Loop Controllable Actuation in Proprioceptive Biohybrid Robots,” published in Advanced Intelligent Systems, details how engineers utilized advanced ceramics to create robotic components that could feel. In the paper, engineers delve deep into the creation of artificial feeling devices that leverage electrical pulses and sensors directly integrated into the robotics surface.
- Source – Advanced Intelligent Systems
Soft Ceramics
To understand the project you first need to take a moment to recognize that ceramics come in many different forms. While you may think of decor or kitchen items, there are also high-performance ceramics. These units conduct electricity and provide a solid structure for many electronics today. Notably, the researchers began their efforts by experimenting with different ceramics to register their behaviors and capabilities.
During the trials, the team detailed how they took this material and broke it down into tiny particles. The particles were then embedded into a thermoplastic matrix. Interstingly, a professional 3D printer was used to ensure the embedding process was completed accurately. Then, the stretchable plastic was manipulated, allowing engineers to register the material’s behavior across a variety of different elasticities and positions.
High-Performance Ceramics Test
The soft sensor materials were tested to see if they could register temperature, strain, pressure, or humidity. These devices were able to register the different senses using electrical pulses. From there, the team took the ceramic field matrix and used it to create a prosthetic hand.
Prosthetic Hand
The prosthetic hand was then used to test the accuracy and sensitivity of the soft sensors. Keenly, the sensors used in the hand were created to register heat and pressure. Additionally, the material could tell its position relative to other parts of the hand. The study concluded that the team succeeded in creating a hand that could feel the pressure applied and even react when it touched another person.
Robot Skin
The next step for researchers was to attempt to create robot skin. The team began by creating a multi-layered ceramic matrix. The matrix was filled with ceramic particles with a special layered setup to monitor touch and temperature changes. This robotic skin was designed to look and feel like human skin, making it a smart option for robots that work near humans. From there, the team went to work creating an AI model.
Smart Prosthetic
An AI model controls the hand’s reactions based on the environment and conditions. Specifically, the AI model was trained using 4500 measurements and muscle movements. This training was conducted with engineers from ETH Zurich and the University of Tokyo. The prosthetic uses tissue-integrated piezoresistive sensors, enabling the device to generate power from movement, eliminating the need for batteries.
Results
The results of the study demonstrate exactly how a robot could be developed that has the capability to work alongside humans safely. These devices could recognize when they bump into a person and even pull back, preventing injuries. Additionally, the system’s AI constantly learns from each interaction, making it the first proprioceptive biohybrid robot that can feel.
Potential Applications
There are many applications for this technology. Coupling advanced AI systems with robots that can feel will lead to the development of safer machines. These units will be able to complete tasks that used to only be possible for humans. Also, they will be more versatile, as they can sense their environment and adjust their actions according to the conditions.
Soft Robotics
Soft robotics are devices that utilize soft materials rather than traditional methods. Soft robots come in many forms. For example, robotic sorters must pick fruit and other sensitive products and move them without causing damage. These devices are set to see a major upgrade with the introduction of sensing skin and other modifications that enable them to operate like human hands.
Soft Robots have sparked interest recently for several reasons. They can bump into you and not harm you. Also, these devices can often change their shape to traverse difficult terrain. This development will ensure that soft robots will soon feel temperature and pressure.
Healthcare
Several firms specialize in robotic surgeons. These devices operate using precision and optical sensors to help guide the unit. The introduction of pressure and temperature sensors would allow these robots to conduct more intricate surgeries while remaining in tune with the patient’s conditions.
Notably, smart prosthetics could help millions of patients enjoy a better quality of life. These next-generation items could incorporate multiple senses, providing the patient with a natural experience. Additionally, when you couple this technology with recent breakthroughs in brain controllers, you may see the day when patients’ replacement prosthetics are more capable than their originals.
Search and Rescue
Soft robots have found a special purpose within the search and rescue sector. These devices can traverse rough environments that are often impossible for humans to access. They can be made to wind like snakes or be shaped like tiny insects. Impressively, these devices have already been used in disaster areas where they helped save lives. The robots could get into the dangerous disaster zones and provide much-needed help before other responders.
In the future, this device could locate people in need and even conduct routine scans of their vitals, providing rescuers with important data on the condition of the patient. Additionally, these robots would be used to assess the best route to retrieve the injured person, as the device could notify rescuers of dangers such as heat or chemicals.
Farming
The world’s farmers are constantly looking for easy ways to improve efficiency. As the world population rises, farmers continue to innovate to meet the growing demand. Soft robotics can help them prepare, plant, harvest, and control the quality of their food. These devices can integrate AI systems to improve their capabilities even further, enabling them to determine with high accuracy if a fruit is ripe or spoiled.
Researchers
Empa’s Laboratory for High-Performance Ceramics led the study. The team worked with the University of Cambridge to develop the AI-powered prosthetic limb. Now the team seeks to expand its efforts and create more advanced robotics, as well as, expand its AI model capabilities.
Companies that Could Benefit from this Research
The robotics industry is on the rise. As such, you can expect to see more units hit manufacturing lines in the coming years. Robots reduce risk and expenses and improve quality. Consequently, more businesses want to integrate them. Here’s one company that’s ideally positioned to make the most of this research in the coming months.
Zebra Technologies
Zebra Technologies (ZBRA -0.49%) entered the market in 1969, originally as Data Specialties Incorporated. The firm’s founders, Ed Kaplan and Gerhard Cless, wanted to create a software and hardware firm that could enhance the user experience and offer innovative solutions. They succeeded in pioneering multiple technologies, including being the first firm to offer a barcode scanner.
In 1986, the company rebranded to Zebra Technologies. Today, it’s a popular provider of robotics, services, and software solutions. Specifically, the fetch100 Roller and Fetch100 Shelf can navigate manufacturing facilities and sort and deliver totes autonomously. The robot is already in use globally and has received high reviews.
Zebra Technologies Corporation (ZBRA -0.49%)
Zebra Technologies is a smart addition to your portfolio for several reasons. For one, the company has been on the rise for a long time. It secured a mention in the 2002 Forbes magazine’s “200 Best Small Companies in America” alongside other accolades.
The company’s stock, ZBRA, has seen considerable and steady growth throughout the year. It has a market cap of $19.808B and its PE Ratio (TTM) is 51.82. This growth was brought on by a combination of the company releasing new products and their ventures into robotics and AI systems.
Ceramics in Robotics
The use of high-performance ceramics in robotics is set to change the market moving forward. This study shows that robots can be set up to feel in a manner that’s similar to humans, enabling them to work alongside people with less risk and enhance productivity. As such, you should prepare for a robotic co-worker in the future.
Learn about other cool robotic projects now.