Preparation method and application of flexible wearable wireless data glove

Abstract

The invention discloses a preparation method and application of a flexible wearable wireless data glove. The invention belongs to the technical field of printing electronics. The invention aims to solve the technical problem that the conventional wireless data glove is not light and not easy to fit. The method comprises the following steps: preparing three kinds of liquid metal ink with different polymeric dispersant contents; the three kinds of liquid metal ink are printed on a flexible substrate, then pulsed light sintering is conducted, and a bending sensor, a pressure sensor and a transmission circuit are obtained; and packaging is carried out by adopting a flexible material after assembly. Liquid metal ink with different polymeric dispersant contents is printed and then subjected to light sintering to serve as a circuit, a bending sensor and a pressure sensor, the prepared glove can distinguish the types of the sensors by obtaining basic resistance, then the resistance change rate is calculated based on the principle of a resistance type sensor, then the actual situation is fitted, and the accuracy of the glove is improved. Wanted data is obtained or simulation of actions is completed in VR.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The invention belongs to the technical field of printed electronics, and in particular relates to a preparation method and application of a flexible wearable wireless data glove. Background Art

[0002] The current wireless data gloves are a high-tech wearable device designed for virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR) and human-computer interaction. Through built-in sensors, it can accurately capture the movement trajectory of the user's hands and fingers, and transmit this data to a computer or mobile device in real time, thereby realizing the manipulation of objects in the virtual environment. Compared with traditional wired data gloves, the advantages of wireless data gloves are their higher portability and comfort. Users are no longer bound by cables and can operate and experience more freely. Wireless data gloves usually use advanced wireless communication technologies such as Bluetooth or Wi-Fi to ensure low latency and high stability of data transmission. The sensors of the gloves include gyroscopes, accelerometers, bend sensors and tactile feedback devices. These components work together to accurately capture the bending, extension, rotation and other subtle movements of the fingers. In addition, the gloves may also be equipped with force feedback function, so that users can feel tactile feedback in the virtual environment, further enhancing the sense of immersion.

[0003] There are still many problems in the design of current wireless data gloves. For example, data gloves are bulky and may cause discomfort when worn for a long time. Especially in scenarios where the hands need to perform delicate operations, the design of the gloves needs to be lighter and more fitted. In terms of material selection, the material selection of gloves also affects their comfort. Current data gloves often use hard materials, which will restrict hand movements. Moreover, the production process requires collaborative assembly by multiple manufacturers, which greatly reduces production efficiency. Summary of the invention

[0004] In response to the above technical problems, the present invention discloses a method for preparing a flexible wearable wireless data glove, which utilizes the characteristics of liquid metal and dispensing printing and combines with a flexible substrate to greatly improve the hand fit and production efficiency of the data glove.

[0005] One of the purposes of the present invention is to provide a method for preparing a flexible wearable wireless data glove, the method being carried out according to the following steps:

[0006] S1: ultrasonically mixing liquid metal and organic solutions of three polymer dispersants with different concentrations to obtain three liquid metal inks with different polymer dispersant contents;

[0007] S2: Liquid metal inks with three different polymer dispersant contents were injected into the needle tube of a microelectronic printer, printed on a flexible substrate, and then pulsed light sintered to obtain a bending sensor, a pressure sensor, and a circuit for connecting each sensor to a module;

[0008] S3: After assembly, a flexible material is used for packaging to obtain a flexible wearable wireless data glove.

[0009] It is further defined that the liquid metal in S1 is gallium-based liquid metal.

[0010] It is further defined that the gallium-based liquid metal is gallium, gallium-indium alloy or gallium-indium-tin alloy.

[0011] It is further defined that the polymer dispersant in S1 is polyvinyl pyrrolidone (PVP) and the solvent of the organic solution is ethanol. The selection of the solvent requires that it has the characteristic of rapid evaporation, because if the evaporation speed is too slow, it will affect the heat input effect of the light. After experimental verification, ethanol was selected as the most suitable solvent.

[0012] It is further defined that the concentrations of the three organic solutions of the polymer dispersants with different concentrations in S1 are between 1-25 wt.%, and the concentration difference is 5-15 wt.%.

[0013] It is further defined that the flexible substrate in S2 is PDMS or Ecoflex.

[0014] Further definition, the printing parameters in S2: the dispensing height is 0.25-2mm. The selection of dispensing speed and dispensing pressure depends on the storage time of the liquid metal ink. As the storage time increases, the viscosity of the ink increases, which directly affects the printing difficulty. After experimental verification, the dispensing speed range is 5-20mm / s, and the dispensing pressure range is 15-120kPa.

[0015] Further definition, the voltage of pulsed light sintering in S2 is 400-480V, and the energy density is 4.5-6.5J / cm 2 .

[0016] A second object of the present invention is to provide a flexible wearable wireless data glove made according to the above method.

[0017] The third object of the present invention is to provide an application of the above method in the preparation of flexible wireless data acquisition and transmission equipment.

[0018] A fourth object of the present invention is to provide a flexible wearable wireless data glove prepared by the above method for application in the fields of virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR) and human-computer interaction.

[0019] Compared with the prior art, the present invention has the following significant effects:

[0020] The present invention uses dispensing to print liquid metal ink, draws circuit patterns and flexible device patterns on a flexible substrate, and integrates the flexible data transmission part of the data glove. Thermal stress is applied to the circuit pattern and the flexible device by pulse light sintering, so that the conductive circuit is sintered between the liquid metal ink particles. This design uses low-resistance liquid metal ink to print the data transmission circuit of the data glove. Two other inks with different resistances are used as the bending sensor and pressure sensor of the glove. The purpose of using two different resistance inks is to be able to distinguish the sensor category by obtaining the basic resistance in the data collection and processing module, and then calculate the resistance change rate based on the principle of the resistive sensor, and then fit the actual situation to obtain the desired data or complete the action simulation in VR. Due to the fluidity of liquid metal, the electrical connection of the patch chip can be directly completed without welding, and after further packaging, the data glove can be directly obtained. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0021] Figure 1 This is a flow chart for preparing liquid metal ink of the present invention; wherein 1-PVP, 2-centrifuge tube, 3-liquid metal, 4-ultrasonic crusher vibration rod, 5-cooling liquid, 6-microelectronic printer needle tube;

[0022] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the wireless data glove of the present invention;

[0023] Figure 3 The following is a flow chart of the preparation process of the wireless data gloves of the present invention;

[0024] Figure 4 SEM images of liquid metal inks with different PVP contents before sintering in Example 1; (a) -5wt.%, (b) -10wt.%, (c) -15wt.%;

[0025] Figure 5 The effect of different dispensing speeds on line width in Example 1 is shown when the dispensing pressure is 18 kPa;

[0026] Figure 6 For Figure 5 Corresponding line width photos; (a) -6mm / s, (b) -7mm / s, (c) -8mm / s, (d) -9mm / s, (e) -10mm / s, (f) -11mm / s, (g) -12mm / s, (h) -13mm / s, (i) -14mm / s;

[0027] Figure 7 The effect of different dispensing air pressures on line width in Example 1 is shown when the dispensing speed is 12 mm / s;

[0028] Figure 8For Figure 7 Corresponding line width physical photos; (a) -15.5kPa, (b) -16kPa, (c) -16.5kPa, (d) -17kPa, (e) -17.5k Pa, (f) -18k Pa, (g) -18.5kPa, (h) -19kPa, (i) -19.5kPa;

[0029] Fig. 9 This is a comparison diagram of the liquid metal ink before and after sintering when the pvp concentration is 5wt% in Example 1;

[0030] Fig.10 This is a resistance trend diagram of liquid metal inks with different PVP contents at different sintering powers in Example 1. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0031] In order to make the purpose, technical solution and advantages of the present invention more clearly understood, the present invention is further described in detail below in conjunction with the embodiments. It should be understood that the specific embodiments described herein are only used to explain the present invention and are not used to limit the present invention.

[0032] The experimental methods used in the following examples are conventional methods unless otherwise specified. The materials, reagents, methods and instruments used are conventional materials, reagents, methods and instruments in the art unless otherwise specified, and can be obtained through commercial channels by those skilled in the art.

[0033] The terms "comprising," "including," "having," "containing," or any other variations thereof, as used in the following examples, are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion. For example, a composition, step, method, article, or apparatus comprising the listed elements is not necessarily limited to only those elements, but may include other elements not expressly listed or inherent to such composition, step, method, article, or apparatus.

[0034] The "one embodiment" or "embodiment" of the present invention refers to a specific feature, structure or characteristic that can be included in at least one implementation of the present invention. The "in one embodiment" that appears in different places in this specification does not refer to the same embodiment, nor is it a separate or selective embodiment that is mutually exclusive with other embodiments.

[0035] The endpoints and any values ​​of the ranges disclosed in the invention are not limited to the precise ranges or values, and these ranges or values ​​should be understood to include values ​​close to these ranges or values. For numerical ranges, the endpoint values ​​of each range, the endpoint values ​​of each range and the individual point values, and the individual point values ​​can be combined with each other to obtain one or more new numerical ranges, which should be regarded as specifically disclosed in this article.

[0036] Example 1: Combination Figure 1-3 The preparation method of the flexible wearable wireless data gloves of this embodiment is carried out according to the following steps:

[0037] (1) Combination Figure 1 , prepare liquid metal ink: first, add 0.86mL of EGaIn alloy to three 5mL centrifuge tubes respectively, then add 2mL of ethanol solution of polyvinyl pyrrolidone (PVP) with a concentration of 5wt.% / 10wt.% / 15wt.% to the centrifuge tubes respectively. Then, use an ultrasonic crusher to ultrasonicate the mixture, insert the ultrasonic crusher vibration rod into the mixed solution, set the ultrasonic power to 360W, the ultrasonic time to 2 minutes, and ultrasonicate for 2 seconds and rest for 2 seconds to obtain liquid metal ink. Figure 4 It can be seen that with the increase of PVP concentration, although its effect on ink coating and dispersion is similar and the distance between particles is not much different, its insulating property will lead to an increase in the base resistance after sintering.

[0038] (2) Combination Figure 2-3 , liquid metal ink with a PVP content of 5wt.% was injected into the needle of the microelectronic printer, and the required circuit pattern was printed on the PDMS flexible substrate. The ink storage time was 20min, the dispensing height was 0.4mm, the dispensing speed was 12mm / s, and the dispensing pressure was 18kPa. Liquid metal ink with a PVP content of 10wt.% was injected into the needle of the microelectronic printer, and the required pressure sensor was printed on the PDMS flexible substrate. The ink storage time was 30min, the dispensing height was 0.4mm, the dispensing speed was 11mm / s, and the dispensing pressure was 20kPa. Liquid metal ink with a PVP content of 15wt.% was injected into the needle of the microelectronic printer, and the required bending sensor was printed on the PDMS flexible substrate. The ink storage time was 40min, the dispensing height was 0.4mm, the dispensing speed was 10mm / s, and the dispensing pressure was 22kPa. The influence of dispensing parameters on line width is shown in Figure 5-8 As shown, by adjusting the dispensing parameters, it can adapt to different patch chip sizes.

[0039] (3) Place the load circuit and sensor substrate on the table and perform pulse light sintering. Use a light shield to perform light sintering on three locations (circuit, bending sensor, and pressure sensor) at 465V, 460V, and 450V, respectively. The sintering conditions are as follows: Fig. 9As shown, a conductive circuit and a flexible sensor device are obtained. Then, a data processing module and a power supply module are patched at the preset pads. Finally, a PDMS encapsulation layer is spin-coated on the substrate of the load circuit. The spin-coating speed is 200r / min, the time is 1min, and the spin-coated PDMS thickness is 0.5mm. After spin-coating, it is dried at 80℃ in a vacuum drying oven for 3h. After drying, a flexible wearable wireless data glove is obtained.

[0040] from Fig. 9 It can be seen that after the pulsed light sintering process, the liquid metal particles complete sintering and produce a sintering neck morphology.

[0041] from Fig.10 It can be seen that when processing inks with different PVP concentrations at the same sintering power, the resulting circuit and device resistances are different. Therefore, the synergistic effect of photo-sintering power and PVP concentration can be used to achieve the preparation of low-resistance circuits and sensors with different resistances.

[0042] Example 2: Combination Figure 1-3 The preparation method of the flexible wearable wireless data gloves of this embodiment is carried out according to the following steps:

[0043] (1) Combination Figure 1 , prepare liquid metal ink: first, add 0.86 mL of EGaIn alloy to three 5 mL centrifuge tubes respectively, then add 2 mL of ethanol solution of polyvinyl pyrrolidone (PVP) with a concentration of 2wt.% / 7.5wt.% / 20wt.% to the centrifuge tubes respectively. Then, use an ultrasonic crusher to ultrasonicate the mixture, insert the ultrasonic crusher vibration rod into the mixed solution, set the ultrasonic power to 360 W, the ultrasonic time to 2 minutes, and the ultrasonication lasts for 2 seconds and rests for 2 seconds to obtain liquid metal ink.

[0044] (2) Combination Figure 2-3 , inject the liquid metal ink with a PVP content of 2wt.% into the needle of the microelectronic printer, and print the required circuit pattern on the PDMS flexible substrate. The ink storage time is 10min, the dispensing height is 0.4mm, the dispensing speed is 14mm / s, and the dispensing pressure is 16kPa. Inject the liquid metal ink with a PVP content of 7.5wt.% into the needle of the microelectronic printer, and print the required pressure sensor on the PDMS flexible substrate. The ink storage time is 20min, the dispensing height is 0.4mm, the dispensing speed is 12mm / s, and the dispensing pressure is 18kPa. Inject the liquid metal ink with a PVP content of 20wt.% into the needle of the microelectronic printer, and print the required bending sensor on the PDMS flexible substrate. The ink storage time is 30min, the dispensing height is 0.4mm, the dispensing speed is 10mm / s, and the dispensing pressure is 21kPa.

[0045] (3) Place the load circuit and sensor substrate on the storage table and perform pulse light sintering. Use a light shield to perform light sintering on three locations (circuit, bending sensor, pressure sensor) respectively, using sintering voltages of 470V, 455V, and 450V respectively to obtain a conductive circuit and a flexible sensor device. Then, patch the data processing module and power supply module at the preset pads. Finally, spin coat a layer of PDMS encapsulation layer on the substrate of the load circuit. The spin coating speed is 200r / min, the time is 1min, and the spin coating PDMS thickness is 0.5mm. After spin coating, dry it in a vacuum drying oven at 80℃ for 3h. After drying, a flexible wearable wireless data glove is obtained.

[0046] The above are only preferred specific embodiments of the present invention, which are all different implementations based on the overall concept of the present invention, and the protection scope of the present invention is not limited thereto. Any changes or substitutions that can be easily thought of by a person skilled in the art within the technical scope disclosed by the present invention should be included in the protection scope of the present invention. Therefore, the protection scope of the present invention should be based on the protection scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A method for preparing a flexible wearable wireless data glove, characterized in that: The method: S1: ultrasonically mixing liquid metal and organic solutions of three polymer dispersants with different concentrations to obtain three liquid metal inks with different polymer dispersant contents; S2: Liquid metal inks with three different polymer dispersant contents were injected into the needle tube of a microelectronic printer, printed on a flexible substrate, and then pulsed light sintered to obtain a bending sensor, a pressure sensor, and a circuit for connecting each sensor to a module; S3: After assembly, a flexible material is used for packaging to obtain a flexible wearable wireless data glove.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The liquid metal in S1 is gallium-based liquid metal.

3. The method according to claim 2, characterized in that The gallium-based liquid metal is gallium, gallium-indium alloy or gallium-indium-tin alloy.

4. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that In S1, the polymer dispersant is PVP, the solvent is ethanol, and the concentrations of the organic solutions of the three different concentrations of the polymer dispersants are between 1-25 wt.%, and the concentration difference is 5-15 wt.%.

5. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The flexible substrate in S2 is PDMS or Ecoflex.

6. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that Printing parameters in S2: dispensing height is 0.25-2mm, dispensing speed range is 5-20mm / s, and dispensing air pressure range is 15-120kPa.

7. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The voltage of pulsed light sintering in S2 is 400-480V, and the energy density is 4.5-6.5J / cm 2 .

8. A flexible wearable wireless data glove made by the method described in any one of claims 1 to 7.

9. Application of the method according to any one of claims 1 to 7 in the preparation of flexible wireless data acquisition and transmission equipment.

10. Application of the flexible wearable wireless data glove according to claim 8 in the fields of VR, AR and human-computer interaction.

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