An integrated electronic skin device, robot and manufacturing method

Abstract

The present invention provides an integrated electronic skin device, a robot and a manufacturing method, which relate to the field of intelligent robots. The integrated electronic skin device includes an interface board, a plurality of electronic skin units and a second cable. The electronic skin unit includes a bottom lining film, a sensitive unit and a first cable. The sensitive unit and the first cable are arranged on one side of the bottom lining film, and the sensitive unit is electrically connected to the first cable. One end of the second cable is electrically connected to the first cable, and the other end is connected to one side of the interface board. By connecting a plurality of electronic skin units to the interface board through the second cable, a sensitive unit array is formed, which improves the perception accuracy of the electronic skin and facilitates the installation and disassembly of the electronic skin. Since the second cable with a relatively thin and flexible thickness is used to connect the electronic skin unit and the interface board, it will not affect the normal operation of the upper electronic skin unit.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of intelligent robots, and in particular, to an integrated electronic skin device, a robot and a manufacturing method thereof. Background Art

[0002] The skin is one of the largest and most important organs of the human body. The skin and various types of sensors therein work together to constitute the sense of touch, one of the five senses of the human body. In order to endow machines and devices with a similar sense of touch, the electronic skin technology has emerged. This technology can provide thin, light and flexible tactile chips, which are integrated with machines to endow these robots with tactile sensation, so as to perform more intelligent and precise control. At present, due to the limitations of production cost and processing technology, it is difficult to process the electronic skin into a large-scale array. In addition, the existing electronic skin also has the problems of inconvenient installation and disassembly. Summary of the Invention

[0003] The present invention provides an integrated electronic skin device, a robot and a manufacturing method thereof, so as to solve the problems that due to the limitations of production cost and processing technology, it is difficult to process the electronic skin into a large-scale array, and the installation and disassembly are inconvenient.

[0004] The present invention provides an integrated electronic skin device, including:

[0005] An interface board;

[0006] A plurality of electronic skin units, each of the electronic skin units includes a bottom lining film, a sensitive unit and a first wiring harness. The sensitive unit and the first wiring harness are arranged on one side of the bottom lining film, and the sensitive unit is electrically connected to the first wiring harness;

[0007] A second wiring harness, one end of the second wiring harness is electrically connected to the first wiring harness, and the other end is connected to one side of the interface board.

[0008] According to the integrated electronic skin device provided by the present invention, the other end of the second wiring harness is connected to one side of the interface board by gluing, clamping or welding.

[0009] According to the integrated electronic skin device provided by the present invention, it further includes:

[0010] An insertion interface, the insertion interface is connected to the interface board so that the insertion interface is electrically connected to the other end of the second wiring harness.

[0011] According to the integrated electronic skin device provided by the present invention, the material of the bottom lining film is a flexible material.

[0012] According to the integrated electronic skin device provided by the present invention, the first wiring harness and the second wiring harness are integrally formed.

[0013] According to the integrated electronic skin device provided by the present invention, both the first wiring harness and the second wiring harness are FPC wiring harnesses.

[0014] The present invention also provides a robot, which includes the integrated electronic skin device as described above.

[0015] The present invention also provides a method for manufacturing an integrated electronic skin device, and the manufacturing method includes the following steps:

[0016] Set a bottom lining film on the surface of the substrate;

[0017] Set a printed wiring harness on the side of the bottom lining film facing away from the substrate;

[0018] Set a sensitive unit on the side of the bottom lining film facing away from the substrate, and electrically connect the sensitive unit to the printed wiring harness;

[0019] Set a protective coating on the side of the bottom lining film facing away from the substrate to cover the sensitive unit and the printed wiring harness;

[0020] Pattern the protective coating to expose the printed wiring harness outside the protective coating, and cut the protective coating and the bottom lining film;

[0021] Connect the exposed part of the printed wiring harness to one side of the interface board.

[0022] According to the method for manufacturing an integrated electronic skin device provided by the present invention, the substrate is a silicon wafer or a glass wafer.

[0023] According to the method for manufacturing an integrated electronic skin device provided by the present invention, the sensitive unit and the printed wiring harness are printed on the side of the bottom lining film facing away from the substrate by screen printing.

[0024] For the integrated electronic skin device provided by the present invention, a plurality of electronic skin units are connected to the interface board through the second wiring harness to form a sensitive unit array, improving the sensing accuracy of the electronic skin and facilitating the installation and disassembly of the electronic skin; since the second wiring harness with a relatively thin and flexible thickness is used to connect the electronic skin unit and the interface board, it will not affect the normal operation of the upper electronic skin unit. Description of the Drawings

[0025] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the present invention or the prior art, the following will briefly introduce the drawings required for the description of the embodiments or the prior art. Obviously, the following drawings are some embodiments of the present invention. For those of ordinary skill in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative efforts.

[0026] Figure 1 It is a schematic three-dimensional structure diagram of the integrated electronic skin device provided by the present invention;

[0027] Figure 2 It is a schematic top view structure diagram of the integrated electronic skin device provided by the present invention;

[0028] Figure 3 It is a schematic structure diagram of the manipulator and the integrated electronic skin device provided by the present invention;

[0029] Figure 4 It is a schematic diagram of the manufacturing process of the integrated electronic skin device provided by the present invention;

[0030] Figure 5 It is a schematic flow chart of the manufacturing method of the integrated electronic skin device provided by the present invention.

[0031] Reference numerals:

[0032] 101, bottom lining film; 102, first wiring harness; 103, sensitive unit; 104, printed wiring harness; 105, protective coating; 106, terminal opening; 201, second wiring harness; 202, interface board; 301, plug interface; 401, manipulator. Specific embodiments

[0033] The following further describes the embodiments of the present invention in detail with reference to the drawings and examples. The following examples are used to illustrate the present invention, but cannot be used to limit the scope of the present invention.

[0034] In the description of the embodiments of the present invention, it should be noted that the orientation or positional relationship indicated by the terms "center", "longitudinal", "transverse", "upper", "lower", "front", "rear", "left", "right", "vertical", "horizontal", "top", "bottom", "inner", "outer", etc. is based on the orientation or positional relationship shown in the drawings. It is only for the convenience of describing the embodiments of the present invention and simplifying the description, rather than indicating or implying that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, be constructed and operated in a specific orientation, and therefore cannot be understood as a limitation to the embodiments of the present invention. In addition, the terms "first", "second", "third" are only used for descriptive purposes and cannot be understood as indicating or implying relative importance.

[0035] In the description of the embodiments of the present invention, it should be noted that unless otherwise clearly specified and limited, the terms "connected" and "connected" should be understood in a broad sense. For example, it can be a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integral connection; it can be a mechanical connection or an electrical connection; it can be directly connected or indirectly connected through an intermediate medium. For those of ordinary skill in the art, the specific meanings of the above terms in the embodiments of the present invention can be understood according to specific situations.

[0036] In the embodiments of the present invention, unless otherwise clearly defined and limited, the first feature being "on" or "under" the second feature may be that the first and second features are in direct contact, or the first and second features are in indirect contact through an intermediate medium. Moreover, the first feature being "above", "over" and "on top of" the second feature may be that the first feature is directly above or obliquely above the second feature, or simply means that the horizontal height of the first feature is higher than that of the second feature. The first feature being "under", "beneath" and "underneath" the second feature may be that the first feature is directly below or obliquely below the second feature, or simply means that the horizontal height of the first feature is less than that of the second feature.

[0037] In the description of this specification, the description with reference to terms such as "one embodiment", "some embodiments", "example", "specific example", or "some examples" means that the specific features, structures, materials, or characteristics described in connection with the embodiment or example are included in at least one embodiment or example of the embodiments of the present invention. In this specification, the schematic representations of the above terms do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment or example. Moreover, the specific features, structures, materials, or characteristics described may be combined in any one or more embodiments or examples in a suitable manner. In addition, without conflict, those skilled in the art may combine and combine the different embodiments or examples described in this specification and the features of different embodiments or examples.

[0038] The following Figures 1 - 5 describes an integrated electronic skin device, a robot and a manufacturing method thereof of the present invention.

[0039] Figure 1 Illustrates a schematic three-dimensional structure diagram of an integrated electronic skin device, as Figure 1 shown, the integrated electronic skin device includes an interface board 202, a plurality of electronic skin units and a second cable 201. The electronic skin unit includes a bottom lining film 101, a sensitive unit 103 and a first cable 102. The sensitive unit 103 and the first cable 102 are arranged on one side of the bottom lining film 101, and the sensitive unit 103 is electrically connected to the first cable 102. One end of the second cable 201 is electrically connected to the first cable 102, and the other end is connected to one side of the interface board 202.

[0040] Connecting a plurality of electronic skin units to the interface board 202 through the second cable 201 forms an array of sensitive units 103, improving the sensing accuracy of the electronic skin and facilitating the installation and disassembly of the electronic skin; since the relatively thin and flexible second cable 201 is used to connect the electronic skin unit and the interface board 202, it will not affect the normal operation of the upper electronic skin unit.

[0041] Here, multiple electronic skin units can be arranged at intervals longitudinally, laterally, or arranged in a matrix form according to requirements. During installation, the bottom lining film 101 is fixed at a predetermined position of the robot, and the bottom lining film 101 and the robot can be connected by gluing or fasteners. The sensitive unit 103 can be one or a combination of a tactile sensor, a pressure sensor, a force sensor, and a slip sensor. Among them, the tactile sensor can be a photoelectric sensor, a microswitch, or a piezoresistive polymer material element; the pressure sensor can be a piezoelectric element, a conductive rubber, or a piezoresistive polymer material element; the force sensor can be a strain gauge or a conductive rubber; the slip sensor can be a photoelectric rotary sensor, an angular encoder, or a vibration detector.

[0042] In one embodiment, the bottom lining film 101 is used to provide an installation foundation for the sensitive unit 103 and the first wiring harness 102. The material of the bottom lining film 101 is a flexible material, and the flexible material can be polyimide, parylene, or thermoplastic polyurethane elastomer rubber. However, the flexible material is not limited thereto. Using the flexible material can ensure that the bottom lining film 101 can better fit the robot during installation and will not affect the installation of the outer skin of the robot.

[0043] According to an embodiment of the present invention, Figure 2 illustrates a schematic top view structure of an integrated electronic skin device, as Figure 2As shown in the figure, the other end of the second row of wires 201 is adhesively connected to one side of the interface board 202. Of course, the connection method between the other end of the second row of wires 201 and the interface board 202 is not limited to this, and it can also be connected by clamping or welding. The second row of wires 201 of multiple electronic skin units are arranged in sequence on one side of the interface board 202 to avoid mutual influence and facilitate connection. When connecting, the interface board 202 is connected to its matching connector, which can realize the simultaneous connection of multiple electronic skin units and facilitate the installation and disassembly of the electronic skin. In this embodiment, the integrated electronic skin device further includes a socket 301, and the socket 301 is plugged into the interface board 202 so that the socket 301 is electrically connected to the other end of the second row of wires 201. The socket 301 and the interface board 202 are used in cooperation to realize the quick connection of the electronic skin units and shorten the assembly time of the electronic skin. In specific implementation, there are two ways to electrically connect the socket 301 to the other end of the second row of wires 201. One is that the contact terminals in the socket 301 directly contact the other end of the second row of wires 201. Although this connection method has a simple structure, it is easy to cause wear of the wires at the other end of the second row of wires 201 and the stability is poor. Another connection method is to arrange multiple contact terminals at intervals on one side of the interface board 202, and connect each contact terminal to the wire at the other end of the corresponding second row of wires 201. When the socket 301 is plugged into the interface board 202, the contact terminals of the interface board 202 contact the corresponding contact terminals in the socket 301, thereby realizing the electrical connection between the socket 301 and the other end of the second row of wires 201. This connection method avoids wearing the wires at the other end of the second row of wires 201 and improves the stability of the connection of the electronic skin.

[0044] According to an embodiment of the present invention, the first row of wires 102 and the second row of wires 201 are integrally formed. Both the first row of wires 102 and the second row of wires 201 are FPC wires, and the first row of wires 102 and the second row of wires 201 can be printed by screen printing. Since the wires are made of flexible materials and have a relatively thin thickness, the wires can be bent along with the skin of the robot. When multiple electronic skin units are arranged in an array, the second row of wires 201 of the electronic skin units in the lower layer can pass under the electronic skin units in the upper layer without affecting the upper electronic skin units.

[0045] Specifically, Figure 3 The structural schematic diagrams of the manipulator and the integrated electronic skin device provided by the present invention are exemplified, as Figure 3 shown. Hereinafter, taking the application of the integrated electronic skin device provided by the embodiment of the present invention on the manipulator 401 as an example to illustrate the integrated electronic skin device.

[0046] In this embodiment, the integrated electronic skin device includes an interface board 202, an electronic skin unit, a second cable 201, and a jack 301. The electronic skin unit includes a bottom lining film 101, a sensitive unit 103, and a first cable 102. The sensitive unit 103 and the first cable 102 are disposed on one side of the bottom lining film 101. There are multiple sensitive units 103 and multiple first cables 102. Each first cable 102 corresponds to one sensitive unit 103, and the sensitive unit 103 is electrically connected to the first cable 102. The number of the second cables 201 and the number of the electronic skin units are both three, and they correspond to each other one by one. One end of the second cable 201 is electrically connected to the first cable 102, and the other end of the second cable 201 is adhesively connected to one side of the interface board 202. The jack 301 is plugged into the interface board 202 so that the jack 301 is electrically connected to the other end of the second cable 201. In this embodiment, five integrated electronic skin devices are provided on the manipulator 401. The five integrated electronic skin devices are respectively disposed on five mechanical fingers. Each mechanical finger joint corresponds to one electronic skin unit. The bottom lining film 101 is attached to the corresponding mechanical finger joint so that the mechanical finger joint is coupled to the sensitive unit 103, improving the accuracy of the sensitive unit 103 for sensing. The specific type of the sensitive unit 103 is determined according to the working content of the manipulator 401 and the type of data to be detected, and no specific limitation is provided here. When the manipulator 401 works, the fingers of the manipulator bend, the first cable 102 and the second cable 201 bend together with the fingers of the manipulator, and the sensitive unit 103 contacts the object to obtain various detection data.

[0047] The present invention also provides a robot, which includes the integrated electronic skin device as described in the above embodiment.

[0048] Figure 4 The schematic diagram of the manufacturing process of the integrated electronic skin device provided by the present invention is illustrated. Figure 5 The schematic flow chart of the manufacturing method of the integrated electronic skin device provided by the present invention is illustrated. As Figure 4 and 5 shown, the present invention also provides a manufacturing method of an integrated electronic skin device. The manufacturing method includes the following steps:

[0049] Step a1, disposing the bottom lining film 101 on the surface of the substrate;

[0050] The surface of the substrate is required to be smooth to prevent adhesion during the curing process of the bottom lining film 101. The better the thermal conductivity of the substrate, the faster the curing speed of the bottom lining film 101. In this embodiment, the substrate is a glass sheet, and of course, it can also be a silicon wafer. There are two ways to set the bottom lining film 101. One way is to prepare the bottom lining film 101 in advance before preparing the electronic skin, and lay the bottom lining film 101 flat on the surface of the substrate during use; the other way is to spin-coat the liquid substrate material on the surface of the substrate by the spin-coating method, and a flat bottom lining film 101 is formed after curing.

[0051] Step a2, arrange a printed wiring 104 on the side of the bottom lining film 101 away from the substrate;

[0052] Here, the printed wiring 104 includes a first wiring 102 and a second wiring 201. The printed wiring 104 is printed on the side of the bottom lining film 101 away from the substrate. The bottom lining film 101 increases the structural strength of the printed wiring 104 and also reduces the total thickness of the electronic skin.

[0053] Step a3, arrange a sensitive unit 103 on the side of the bottom lining film 101 away from the substrate, and electrically connect the sensitive unit 103 to the printed wiring 104;

[0054] The sensitive unit 103 can be printed on the bottom lining film 101 by the screen printing method or adhered to the bottom lining film 101. The types of several sensitive units 103 of the same electronic skin unit can be the same type of sensitive unit 103 or a combination of different types of sensitive units 103, which is specifically selected according to actual needs.

[0055] Step a4, arrange a protective coating 105 on the side of the bottom lining film 101 away from the substrate to cover the sensitive unit 103 and the printed wiring 104;

[0056] The protective coating 105 is a photosensitive insulating material. The protective coating 105 is also arranged by the spin-coating method. The sensitive unit 103 and the printed wiring 104 are covered in the protective coating 105, which can play a role in protection and fixation.

[0057] Step a5, pattern the protective coating 105 to expose the printed wiring 104 outside the protective coating 105, and cut the protective coating 105 and the bottom lining film 101;

[0058] The patterning of the protective coating 105 is carried out by ultraviolet light and a mask to expose the printed wiring 104 outside the protective coating 105, forming a terminal opening 106, that is, part of the second wiring 201 is exposed outside the protective coating 105 to facilitate connection with the interface board 202. After cutting the protective coating 105 and the bottom lining film 101, a plurality of electronic skin units can be obtained.

[0059] Step a6: Connect the exposed portion of the printed flexible cable 104 to one side of the interface board 202.

[0060] There are various connection methods between the interface board 202 and the exposed portion of the printed flexible cable 104. In this embodiment, the interface board 202 is arranged on the side of the bottom lining film 101 close to the substrate, and the exposed portion of the printed flexible cable 104 is connected to one side of the interface board 202, realizing the connection between multiple second flexible cables 201 and the interface board 202. The interface board 202 plays a certain fixing role for the multiple second flexible cables 201, facilitating the installation and disassembly of the electronic skin. After the connection of the interface board 202 is completed, the production of the electronic skin device is completed. Since the whole process has a simple process and is repeatable, it is convenient for large-scale popularization and use, thereby further reducing the production cost of the electronic skin.

[0061] Finally, it should be noted that the above embodiments are only used to illustrate the technical solutions of the present invention and are not intended to limit them; although the present invention has been described in detail with reference to the foregoing embodiments, those of ordinary skill in the art should understand that they can still modify the technical solutions described in the foregoing embodiments, or perform equivalent replacements for some of the technical features; and these modifications or replacements do not make the essence of the corresponding technical solutions deviate from the spirit and scope of the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention.

Claims

1. An integrated electronic skin device, It is characterized in that include: Interface board; A plurality of electronic skin units, each of which comprises a substrate film, a sensitive unit and a first wiring, wherein the sensitive unit and the first wiring are arranged on one side of the substrate film, and the sensitive unit is electrically connected to the first wiring; A second row of cables, one end of which is electrically connected to the first row of cables, and the other end of which is connected to one side of the interface board.

2. The integrated electronic skin device according to claim 1, It is characterized in that The other end of the second cable is connected to one side of the interface board by gluing, clamping or welding.

3. The integrated electronic skin device according to claim 1 or 2, It is characterized in that Also includes: A plug interface is connected to the interface board so that the plug interface is electrically connected to the other end of the second cable.

4. The integrated electronic skin device according to claim 3, It is characterized in that The material of the base film is a flexible material.

5. The integrated electronic skin device according to claim 1, It is characterized in that The first array of cables and the second array of cables are integrally formed.

6. The integrated electronic skin device according to claim 1 or 5, It is characterized in that The first cable and the second cable are both FPC cables.

7. A robot, It is characterized in that The robot comprises the integrated electronic skin device according to any one of claims 1 to 6.

8. A method for manufacturing an integrated electronic skin device, for manufacturing the integrated electronic skin device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, It is characterized in that The production method comprises the following steps: Disposing a backing film on the surface of the substrate; Disposing a printed wiring on a side of the backing film away from the substrate; A sensitive unit is arranged on a side of the backing film away from the substrate, and the sensitive unit is electrically connected to the printed wiring; A protective coating is provided on the side of the backing film facing away from the substrate to cover the sensitive unit and the printed wiring; Patterning the protective coating so that the printed wiring is exposed outside the protective coating, and die-cutting the protective coating and the base film; The exposed portion of the printed wiring is connected to one side of the interface board.

9. The method for manufacturing an integrated electronic skin device according to claim 8, It is characterized in that The substrate is a silicon wafer or a glass wafer.

10. The method for manufacturing an integrated electronic skin device according to claim 9, It is characterized in that The sensitive unit and the printed wiring are printed on a side of the backing film away from the substrate by screen printing.

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