A multi-information flexible sensing system

Abstract

The application provides a multi-information flexible sensing system, which comprises a proximity and tactile sensing unit, a temperature sensing unit and a humidity sensing unit; when an external object approaches, contacts, changes in temperature or changes in humidity, the signal change of different sensors can be judged, and different sensor signal changes produce different actions of the robot; the application senses the changes of the external environment and the position of the external object from multiple aspects, improves the synchronous sensing capability of the sensor and the accuracy of the active safety control of the robot, reduces the cross-coupling degree between different sensing units and the delay and signal interference of the active safety control of the robot.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application belongs to the technical field of multi-sensor, and particularly relates to a multi-information flexible sensing system. BACKGROUND

[0002] With the continuous development and application of robot technology, the accurate, rapid and predictable perception of external objects and environmental changes has become the focus of scholars, and the concept of intelligent robots has been proposed in the academic field, and the sensors attached to the intelligent robots have become the main means for robots to perceive changes in the external environment.

[0003] Single type of sensor has defects in measurement range, stability, sensitivity, resolution, etc., such as tactile sensor which can only act after the collision between external object or human body and robot; proximity sensor mainly uses ultrasonic or infrared sensor, which is large in size and the signal generation and receiving device is too complex.

[0004] Multiple types of sensors also have many defects. For example, there is a time difference between signals, crosstalk and coupling phenomenon between signals, which easily leads to a large difference between sensor output value and actual environmental change, complex decoupling algorithm leading to poor real-time performance of mechanical arm, lack of perception function of human body change or multiple environmental factors in external environment, and each type of response time is difficult to break through millisecond level. SUMMARY

[0005] The present application proposes a multi-information flexible sensing system which can simultaneously perform integrated perception of proximity distance, contact pressure, environmental temperature and environmental humidity to solve the problem of serious restriction of existing passive safety control through fences and the like on industrial safety production efficiency.

[0006] The present application is realized by the following technical solutions:

[0007] A multi-information flexible sensing system:

[0008] The multi-information flexible sensing system comprises a proximity sensing unit, a tactile sensing unit, a temperature sensing unit and a humidity sensing unit;

[0009] The proximity sensing unit and the tactile sensing unit are located in the flexible substrate and are encapsulated by a flexible encapsulation layer; the temperature sensing unit and the humidity sensing unit are located above the outer side of the flexible substrate;

[0010] The temperature sensing unit is connected by a temperature sensitive film and an upper layer coplanar electrode;

[0011] The humidity sensing unit is composed of a humidity sensitive film and an upper layer coplanar electrode;

[0012] The proximity sensing unit and the tactile sensing unit are both composed of a flexible composite film and a lower coplanar electrode.

[0013] Further,

[0014] The flexible substrate and the flexible encapsulation layer are selected from organic materials with good chemical stability, bending property, adhesion, low water permeability and electrical insulation, including polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS), polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and polyimide (PI), etc.

[0015] The flexible composite film is prepared by blending a polymer with a low-dimensional conductive material.

[0016] The polymer includes polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS), polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and polyimide (PI), etc., and the low-dimensional conductive material includes graphene, carbon nanotubes, carbon black, silver nanowires, indium-gallium alloy and metal powder, etc.

[0017] Further,

[0018] The upper coplanar electrode and the lower coplanar electrode are both flexible coplanar electrodes.

[0019] The flexible coplanar electrode is prepared on the flexible substrate and the flexible encapsulation layer by chemical etching, laser cutting, spraying or 3D printing.

[0020] Further,

[0021] The temperature-sensitive film in the temperature sensing unit includes a metal film, a ceramic semiconductor, a temperature-sensitive diode and a triode film.

[0022] The humidity-sensitive film in the humidity sensing unit includes humidity-sensitive ceramic, organic matter, high molecular polymer and humidity-sensitive diode.

[0023] A control method of a multi-information flexible sensing system:

[0024] The proximity sensing unit and the humidity sensing unit in the multi-information flexible sensing system output a capacitance change amount, and the tactile sensing unit and the temperature sensing unit output a resistance change amount.

[0025] The proximity sensing unit and the tactile sensing unit share a group of electrodes, and the temperature sensing unit and the humidity sensing unit share a group of electrodes, and the two groups of electrodes are connected to a test circuit board at the same time to realize the simultaneous output of four signals.

[0026] Further,

[0027] When an external object or a human body approaches the multi-information flexible sensing system, the signal of the proximity sensing unit changes, and the capacitance value decreases.

[0028] When the object or human body collides with the multi-information flexible sensing system, the signal of the tactile sensing unit changes, and the resistance value decreases.

[0029] Further,

[0030] In the temperature sensing unit, the resistance value of the temperature sensitive film increases with the increase of temperature, and when the external environment temperature changes or the different temperature object or human body contacts the multi-information flexible sensing system, the signal of the temperature sensing unit changes, and the resistance of the temperature sensitive film gradually increases to the object temperature corresponding resistance value during the approach process, and the resistance increases with the increase of pressure during the contact process.

[0031] In the humidity sensing unit, the capacitance of the humidity sensitive film decreases with the increase of the environmental humidity, and the signal of the humidity sensitive layer does not change when the external object approaches, and the capacitance increases with the increase of pressure after the object contacts.

[0032] A self-made data processing circuit device, comprising a memory and a processor, the memory stores a computer program, and the processor executes the computer program to realize the steps of the above method.

[0033] A computer readable storage medium for storing computer instructions, the computer instructions are executed by the processor to realize the steps of the above method.

[0034] A robot, the robot comprises the multi-information flexible sensing system of any one of the above.

[0035] Advantages of the present application

[0036] The present application can perceive from multiple angles, so as to assist the active safety control of the robot. Compared with a single form of sensor, the present application perceives the changes of the external environment and the position of the external object from multiple aspects, improves the sensing ability of the sensor and the accuracy of the active safety control of the robot.

[0037] The four signals in the present application are collected through a data acquisition circuit, that is, the lower computer transmits four signals to the upper computer at the same time, so that the four signals have excellent synchronism, can simultaneously perceive the changes of the external environment and the position of the external object, greatly improves the synchronous sensing ability of the sensor and reduces the delay and signal interference of the active safety control of the robot. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0038] Figure 1 The structure diagram of the multi-information flexible sensing system of the present application;

[0039] Figure 2 The principle diagram and electrical interface of each unit of the multi-information flexible sensing system of the present application;

[0040] Figure 3 Figure for multi-information flexible sensing system of the present application;

[0041] Figure 4 Figure for performance test of proximity sensing unit of the present application;

[0042] Figure 5 Figure for performance test of tactile sensing unit of the present application;

[0043] Figure 6 Figure for performance test of temperature sensing unit of the present application, wherein (a) is a graph of temperature vs. resistance, (b) is a graph of humidity vs. ΔR / R0, (c) is a graph of proximity distance and temperature sensor output, (d) is a graph of pressure and temperature sensor output;

[0044] Figure 7 Figure for performance test of humidity sensing unit of the present application, wherein (a) is a graph of relative humidity vs. capacitance, (b) is a graph of relative humidity vs. ΔC / C0, (c) is a graph of proximity distance and capacitance, (d) is a graph of pressure and capacitance. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0045] The technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the drawings in the embodiments of the present application. Obviously, the described embodiments are only part of the embodiments of the present application, rather than all the embodiments of the present application. Based on the embodiments in the present application, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative work fall within the protection scope of the present application.

[0046] In combination Figures 1 to 7 .

[0047] A multi-information flexible sensing system:

[0048] The multi-information flexible sensing system comprises a proximity sensing unit, a tactile sensing unit, a temperature sensing unit and a humidity sensing unit;

[0049] The proximity sensing unit and the tactile sensing unit are located in a flexible substrate and encapsulated by a flexible encapsulation layer; the temperature sensing unit and the humidity sensing unit are located outside the flexible substrate;

[0050] The temperature sensing unit is connected by a temperature-sensitive thin film and an upper layer coplanar electrode;

[0051] The humidity sensing unit is composed of a humidity-sensitive thin film and an upper layer coplanar electrode;

[0052] The proximity sensing unit and the tactile sensing unit are both composed of a flexible composite thin film and a lower layer coplanar electrode.

[0053] The flexible substrate and the flexible encapsulation layer are selected from organic materials with good chemical stability, bending property, adhesion, low water permeability and electrical insulation, including but not limited to polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS), polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and polyimide (PI), etc.

[0054] The dielectric property, electrical conductivity and mechanical sensitivity of the flexible composite film determine the main parameters of the sensor, such as detection range, response speed and detection limit, so the process of the flexible composite film can adopt but is not limited to the method of blending polymer and low-dimensional conductive material; the polymer includes but is not limited to polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS), polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and polyimide (PI), etc.; the low-dimensional conductive material includes but is not limited to graphene, carbon nanotube, carbon black, silver nanowire, indium-gallium alloy and metal powder, etc.

[0055] The upper layer coplanar electrode and the lower layer coplanar electrode are flexible coplanar electrodes;

[0056] The flexible coplanar electrode is prepared on the flexible substrate or the flexible encapsulation layer by methods such as chemical etching, laser cutting, spraying or 3D printing, etc.

[0057] The temperature-sensitive film (layer) in the temperature sensing unit includes but is not limited to metal film, ceramic semiconductor, temperature-sensitive diode and triode film, etc.

[0058] The humidity-sensitive film (layer) in the humidity sensing unit includes but is not limited to humidity-sensitive ceramic, organic matter, high molecular polymer and humidity-sensitive diode, etc.

[0059] A robot, comprising the multi-information flexible sensing system according to any one of the above.

[0060] Embodiment:

[0061] The thickness of the flexible substrate is 200-500um, and can be 200um, 300um, 400um or 500um.

[0062] The thickness of the flexible composite film is 0.5-1mm, and can be 0.5mm, 0.75mm or 1mm.

[0063] The thickness of the temperature-sensitive film is 80-150nm, and can be 80nm, 100nm, 120nm or 150nm.

[0064] The thickness of the humidity-sensitive film is 50-150um, and can be 50um, 80um, 100um or 150um.

[0065] The thickness of the flexible coplanar electrode is 30-80 um, and can be 30 um, 50 um or 80 um.

[0066] A measurement and control method of a multi-information flexible sensing system

[0067] The proximity sensing unit and the humidity sensing unit in the multi-information flexible sensing system output a capacitance change amount, and the tactile sensing unit and the temperature sensing unit output a resistance change amount.

[0068] The proximity sensing unit and the tactile sensing unit share a group of electrodes, and the temperature sensing unit and the humidity sensing unit share a group of electrodes, and the two groups of electrodes are connected to a test circuit board at the same time to realize the simultaneous output of four signals.

[0069] When an external object or a human body approaches the multi-information flexible sensing system, the signal of the proximity sensing unit changes, and the capacitance value decreases.

[0070] After the object or the human body collides with the multi-information flexible sensing system, the signal of the tactile sensing unit changes, and the resistance value decreases.

[0071] In the temperature sensing unit, the resistance value of the temperature-sensitive film (layer) increases with the increase of temperature, and when the external environment temperature changes or a different temperature object or human body contacts the multi-information flexible sensing system, the signal of the temperature sensing unit changes, and the resistance of the temperature-sensitive film gradually increases to the resistance value corresponding to the temperature of the object during the approach, and the resistance increases with the increase of pressure during the contact.

[0072] In the humidity sensing unit, the capacitance of the humidity-sensitive film decreases with the increase of the environmental humidity, and the signal of the humidity-sensitive layer does not change when an external object approaches, and the capacitance increases with the increase of pressure after the object contacts.

[0073] A self-made data processing circuit device includes a memory and a processor, the memory stores a computer program, and the processor executes the computer program to realize the steps of the above method.

[0074] A computer readable storage medium for storing computer instructions, the computer instructions are executed by a processor to realize the steps of the above method.

[0075] The memory in the embodiments of the application can be a volatile memory or a nonvolatile memory, or can include both volatile and nonvolatile memory. Among them, the nonvolatile memory can be a read only memory (ROM), a programmable ROM (PROM), an erasable programmable ROM (EPROM), an electrically EPROM (EEPROM) or a flash memory. The volatile memory can be a random access memory (RAM) used as an external cache. By way of example, and not limitation, many forms of RAM can be used, such as static RAM (SRAM), dynamic RAM (DRAM), synchronous dynamic RAM (SDRAM), double data rate SDRAM (DDR SDRAM), enhanced SDRAM (ESDRAM), synchlink DRAM (SLDRAM), and direct Rambus RAM (DR RAM). It is to be noted that the memory described in the methods of the present application is intended to include, but not be limited to, these and any other suitable types of memory.

[0076] In the above embodiments, all or part of the embodiments can be implemented by software, hardware, firmware or any combination thereof. When implemented by software, all or part of the embodiments can be implemented in the form of a computer program product. The computer program product includes one or more computer instructions. When the computer instructions are loaded and executed on a computer, all or part of the processes or functions described in the embodiments of the present application are generated. The computer can be a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a computer network, or other programmable devices. The computer instructions can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium or transferred from one computer-readable storage medium to another computer-readable storage medium, for example, the computer instructions can be transferred from one website, computer, server or data center to another website, computer, server or data center through wired (such as coaxial cable, optical fiber, digital subscriber line (DSL)) or wireless (such as infrared, wireless, microwave, etc.) mode. The computer-readable storage medium can be any available medium that can be accessed by a computer or a data storage device such as a server, data center, etc. integrated with one or more available media. The available media can be magnetic media (such as floppy disk, hard disk, magnetic tape), optical media (such as high-density digital video disc (DVD)), or semiconductor media (such as solid state disk (SSD)) and the like.

[0077] In the implementation process, each step of the above method can be completed by integrated logic circuit of hardware in the processor or instruction in the form of software. The steps of the method disclosed in the embodiments of the present application can be directly embodied as hardware processor execution or executed by combination of hardware and software modules in the processor. The software module can be located in random access memory, flash memory, read-only memory, programmable read-only memory, electrically erasable programmable memory, register and other mature storage media in the art. The storage medium is located in the memory, and the processor reads the information in the memory and combines the hardware to complete the steps of the above method. To avoid repetition, it will not be described in detail here.

[0078] It should be noted that the processor in the embodiments of the present application can be an integrated circuit chip with signal processing capability. In the implementation process, each step of the method embodiments can be completed by the integrated logic circuit of hardware or the instruction in the form of software in the processor. The processor mentioned above can be a general processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic devices, discrete gate or transistor logic devices, discrete hardware components. The disclosed methods, steps and logic block diagrams in the embodiments of the present application can be implemented or executed. The general processor can be a microprocessor or the processor can be any conventional processor. The steps of the method disclosed in combination with the embodiments of the present application can be directly embodied as hardware code executed by the processor, or executed by the combination of hardware and software modules in the code processor. The software module can be located in the random access memory, the flash memory, the read only memory, the programmable read only memory or the electrically erasable programmable memory, the register or other mature storage medium in the art. The storage medium is located in the memory, and the processor reads the information in the memory, and combines the hardware to complete the steps of the above method.

[0079] The above describes a multi-information flexible sensing system proposed by the present application, the principle and implementation of the present application are described, the above embodiment is only used to help understand the method of the present application and its core idea; at the same time, for the general technical personnel in the art, according to the idea of the present application, the specific implementation and application range will be changed, and the above description should not be understood as the limitation of the present application.

Claims

1. A control method for a multi-information flexible sensing system, characterized in that: The multi-information flexible sensing system includes a proximity sensing unit, a tactile sensing unit, a temperature sensing unit, and a humidity sensing unit. The proximity sensing unit and the tactile sensing unit are located in the flexible substrate and are encapsulated by a flexible encapsulation layer; the temperature sensing unit and the humidity sensing unit are located on the outer side above the flexible substrate. The temperature sensing unit is composed of a temperature-sensitive thin film and an upper coplanar electrode. The humidity sensing unit consists of a humidity-sensitive thin film and an upper coplanar electrode. Both the proximity sensing unit and the tactile sensing unit are composed of a flexible composite film and a lower coplanar electrode. The proximity sensing unit and humidity sensing unit in the multi-information flexible sensing system output capacitance changes, while the tactile sensing unit and temperature sensing unit output resistance changes. The proximity and tactile sensing units share a set of electrodes, as do the temperature and humidity sensing units. Both sets of electrodes are connected to the test circuit board simultaneously, enabling the simultaneous output of four signals.

2. The control method for the multi-information flexible sensing system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The flexible substrate and flexible encapsulation layer are made of organic materials with good chemical stability, flexibility, adhesion, low water permeability and electrical insulation; including polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS), polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and polyimide (PI); The flexible composite film is manufactured using a method of blending polymers with low-dimensional conductive materials. The polymers include polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), and polyimide (PI); the low-dimensional conductive materials include graphene, carbon nanotubes, carbon black, silver nanowires, indium gallium alloys, and metal powders.

3. The control method for the multi-information flexible sensing system according to claim 2, characterized in that: The upper and lower coplanar electrodes are flexible coplanar electrodes; The flexible coplanar electrode is fabricated on a flexible substrate and a flexible encapsulation layer using chemical etching, laser cutting, spraying, or 3D printing methods.

4. The control method for the multi-information flexible sensing system according to claim 3, characterized in that: The temperature-sensitive thin film in the temperature sensing unit includes metal thin film, ceramic semiconductor, temperature-sensitive diode and transistor thin film; The humidity-sensitive film in the humidity sensing unit includes humidity-sensitive ceramics, organic materials, polymers, and humidity-sensitive diodes.

5. The control method for the multi-information flexible sensing system according to claim 4, characterized in that: When an external object or human body approaches the multi-information flexible sensing system, the signal of the proximity sensing unit changes, and the capacitance value decreases. When an object or human body collides with the multi-information flexible sensing system, the signal of the tactile sensing unit changes, and the resistance value decreases.

6. The control method for the multi-information flexible sensing system according to claim 5, characterized in that: In the temperature sensing unit, the resistance of the temperature-sensitive film increases with the increase of temperature. When the ambient temperature changes or objects or human bodies at different temperatures come into contact with the multi-information flexible sensing system, the signal of the temperature sensing unit changes. During the approach process, the resistance of the temperature-sensitive film gradually increases to the resistance value corresponding to the object temperature. During the contact process, the resistance increases with the increase of pressure. In the humidity sensing unit, the capacitance of the humidity-sensitive film decreases as the ambient humidity increases. The proximity of external objects does not cause a change in the signal of the humidity-sensitive layer. After the object comes into contact with the film, the capacitance increases as the pressure increases.

7. A self-made data processing circuit device, comprising a memory and a processor, wherein the memory stores a computer program, characterized in that, When the processor executes the computer program, it implements the steps of the method according to any one of claims 1 to 6.

8. A computer-readable storage medium for storing computer instructions, characterized in that, When the computer instructions are executed by the processor, they implement the steps of the method according to any one of claims 1 to 6.

9. A robot, characterized in that: The robot includes a control method for a multi-information flexible sensing system as described in any one of claims 1 to 6.

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