Electronic simulation skin, simulation gloves and robot

Abstract

The electronic simulation skin comprises an induction recognition module, a temperature control module, a first flexible film layer, a second flexible film layer and a third flexible film layer, the first flexible film layer, the second flexible film layer and the third flexible film layer are sequentially distributed in a stacked mode, and the induction recognition module is arranged between the first flexible film layer and the second flexible film layer in a clamped mode. The sensing identification module can sense external temperature, pressure, shape and surface roughness through the first flexible film layer; the temperature control module is clamped between the second flexible film layer and the third flexible film layer, and the temperature control module can adjust the temperature of the electronic simulation skin. According to the electronic simulation skin, the simulation glove and the robot, the problem that an existing electronic skin glove is not high in simulation degree is solved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates to the technical field of simulated skin, and in particular to an electronic simulated skin, simulated gloves and a robot. Background Art

[0002] With the rapid development of humanoid robots, the degree of bionics is becoming more and more detailed and in-depth. Having human appearance and even perception functions has become the standard for future humanoid robots. Human perception is mainly completed by the nervous system, including vision, hearing, taste, touch, etc. For humanoid robots, vision, hearing and touch are all necessary, and taste can be temporarily ignored.

[0003] The sense of touch is mainly a function of the skin. For humans, the sense of touch is mainly concentrated in the hands. Therefore, for humanoid robots, it is necessary to specially develop an electronic skin glove that has the basic function of human tactile perception and can meet most of the human perception needs.

[0004] However, existing electronic skin gloves generally have a large number of sensors directly arranged on the surface of the gloves. However, it is difficult to simulate real human skin with only sensors, that is, the simulation degree of existing electronic skin gloves is not high. Utility Model Content

[0005] Based on this, it is necessary to provide an electronic simulated skin, simulated gloves and a robot to solve the problem that the existing electronic skin gloves have a low degree of simulation.

[0006] The electronic simulated skin provided in the present application includes a sensing and identification module, a temperature control module, and a first flexible film layer, a second flexible film layer, and a third flexible film layer that are stacked in sequence. The sensing and identification module is sandwiched between the first flexible film layer and the second flexible film layer, and the sensing and identification module can sense the external temperature, pressure, shape, and surface roughness through the first flexible film layer; the temperature control module is sandwiched between the second flexible film layer and the third flexible film layer, and the temperature control module can adjust the temperature of the electronic simulated skin itself.

[0007] In one embodiment, the sensing and identification module includes a temperature sensor, a pressure sensor, a shape perception sensor and a slip sensor. The temperature sensor is used to detect the temperature of the external air or the contact object. The pressure sensor is used to detect the magnitude of the external tension or pressure applied to the electronic simulated skin. The shape perception sensor is used to detect the surface shape of the contact object. The slip sensor is used to detect the degree of slip between the electronic simulated skin and the contact object.

[0008] In one embodiment, the temperature sensor, the pressure sensor, the shape sensing sensor and the slip sensor are arranged in an array, and the sensing recognition module is formed by arranging a plurality of array units, and adjacent array units are independently arranged or partially overlapped. In each array unit, the temperature sensor and the pressure sensor are alternately arranged along the circumference of the array unit, and one of the shape sensing sensor and the slip sensor is arranged at the center of each array unit.

[0009] In one embodiment, the temperature sensor, the pressure sensor, the shape sensing sensor and the slip sensor are arranged in an array, and the sensing identification module is formed by arranging a plurality of array units, and adjacent array units are independently arranged or partially overlapped. In each array unit, the temperature sensor, the pressure sensor, the shape sensing sensor and the slip sensor are alternately arranged along the circumference of the array unit, and in each array unit, the number of temperature sensors A, the number of pressure sensors B, the number of shape sensing sensors C and the number of slip sensors D satisfy A=B=2C=2D.

[0010] In one embodiment, the temperature control module includes an electric heater, and a plurality of electric heaters are distributed along the extended surface of the electronic simulated skin.

[0011] In one embodiment, the electric heater is a resistance wire, a single resistance wire is spirally coiled and distributed between the second flexible film layer and the third flexible film layer, or a plurality of resistance wires are grid-shaped and distributed between the second flexible film layer and the third flexible film layer.

[0012] In one embodiment, the temperature control module includes a cooling circuit, which is distributed between the second flexible membrane layer and the third flexible membrane layer in a spiral winding shape or a grid shape, and the refrigerant can pass through the cooling circuit to dissipate heat for the electronic simulated skin.

[0013] In one embodiment, the first flexible film layer, the second flexible film layer and the third flexible film layer are silicone film layers, or the first flexible film layer, the second flexible film layer and the third flexible film layer are graphene-based film layers.

[0014] The present application also provides a simulation glove, which includes an adapter and the electronic simulation skin described in any one of the above embodiments, and the sensing recognition module and the temperature control module are electrically connected to an external control module through the adapter.

[0015] The present application also provides a robot, which includes a machine body, a control module and the simulation gloves described in any one of the above embodiments, the simulation gloves are mounted on the hand of the machine body, the control module is arranged on the head of the machine body, and the control module is electrically connected to the sensing recognition module and the temperature control module through an adapter.

[0016] Compared with the prior art, the electronic simulated skin, simulated gloves and robots provided by the present application, first of all, by setting a first flexible film layer, a second flexible film layer and a third flexible film layer which are stacked in sequence, the electronic simulated skin of the present application has the multi-layer structure of human skin and a relatively soft property.

[0017] Furthermore, by providing a sensing and recognition module, and the sensing and recognition module is capable of recognizing the temperature, pressure, shape and surface roughness of the outside world, the electronic simulated skin of the present application has diversified recognition capabilities.

[0018] Furthermore, the electronic simulated skin provided in the present application is also provided with a temperature control module. On the one hand, it can enable the electronic simulated skin to simulate the real skin working temperature. On the other hand, when the external temperature is too cold or too hot, or when the electronic simulated skin itself generates a large amount of heat, the temperature control module can effectively adjust the temperature of the simulated electronic skin.

[0019] In summary, the electronic simulated skin of the present application highly simulates the real skin state in terms of multi-layer structure, softness, sensing and recognition ability, and temperature control ability, and has high application value and commercial value. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0020] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application or the conventional technology, the drawings required for use in the embodiments or the conventional technology descriptions are briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present application. For ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative work.

[0021] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of the cross-sectional structure of an electronic simulated skin according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0022] Figure 2 A partial arrangement diagram of a sensing and identification module according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0023] Figure 3 A partial arrangement diagram of a sensing identification module according to another embodiment of the present application.

[0024] Figure numerals: 100, sensing identification module; 110, temperature sensor; 120, pressure sensor; 130, shape sensing sensor; 140, slip sensor; 200, temperature control module; 300, first flexible membrane layer; 400, second flexible membrane layer; 500, third flexible membrane layer. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0025] With the rapid development of humanoid robots, the degree of bionics is becoming more and more detailed and in-depth. Having human appearance and even perception functions has become the standard for future humanoid robots. Human perception is mainly completed by the nervous system, including vision, hearing, taste, touch, etc. For humanoid robots, vision, hearing and touch are all necessary, and taste can be temporarily ignored.

[0026] The sense of touch is mainly a function of the skin. For humans, the sense of touch is mainly concentrated in the hands. Therefore, for humanoid robots, it is necessary to specially develop an electronic skin glove that has the basic function of human tactile perception and can meet most of the human perception needs.

[0027] However, existing electronic skin gloves generally have a large number of sensors directly arranged on the surface of the gloves. However, it is difficult to simulate real human skin with only sensors, that is, the simulation degree of existing electronic skin gloves is not high.

[0028] See also Figure 1-Figure 3 In order to solve the problem that the existing electronic skin gloves have a low degree of simulation, the present application provides an electronic simulated skin, a simulated glove and a robot. The electronic simulated skin includes a sensing and recognition module 100, a temperature control module 200, and a first flexible film layer 300, a second flexible film layer 400 and a third flexible film layer 500 which are stacked in sequence.

[0029] In one embodiment, the first flexible film layer 300 , the second flexible film layer 400 and the third flexible film layer 500 are silicone film layers. The silicone film not only has strong elastic deformation ability but also has thermal conductivity, and can cooperate with the temperature control module 200 to perform overall temperature regulation.

[0030] Specifically, the thickness of the first flexible film layer 300 is 0.5 mm, the thickness of the second flexible film layer 400 is 0.5 mm, and the thickness of the third flexible film layer 500 is 0.5 mm.

[0031] But not limited to this, in another embodiment, the first flexible film layer 300, the second flexible film layer 400 and the third flexible film layer 500 can also be graphene-based film layers. In addition to good heat transfer performance and flexibility, the graphene-based film also has a lower density, which is conducive to the lightweight design of the electronic simulated skin.

[0032] The sensing and identification module 100 is sandwiched between the first flexible film layer 300 and the second flexible film layer 400 , and the sensing and identification module 100 can sense external temperature, pressure, shape and surface roughness through the first flexible film layer 300 .

[0033] In one embodiment, if Figure 2 and Figure 3As shown, the inductive recognition module 100 includes a temperature sensor 110, a pressure sensor 120, a shape sensing sensor 130 and a slip sensor 140. Specifically, the overall thickness of the inductive recognition module is about 1 mm.

[0034] For convenience of marking, in the figure, the temperature sensor 110 is filled with W, the pressure sensor 120 is filled with Y, the shape sensing sensor 130 is filled with X, and the slip sensor 140 is filled with H.

[0035] The temperature sensor 110 is used to detect the temperature of the external air or the contact object. It should be noted that in order to obtain the real temperature value, the robot will further calculate and adjust the temperature value measured by the temperature sensor 110 according to the thermal conductivity of the first flexible film layer 300.

[0036] The pressure sensor 120 is used to detect the magnitude of the external tension or pressure on the electronic simulated skin. That is, when the electronic simulated skin is subjected to external pressure or tension, the pressure sensor 120 can detect a specific numerical value.

[0037] It should be noted that when the electronic simulated skin contacts an object with a certain viscosity, the electronic simulated skin will be subjected to a tensile force.

[0038] The shape sensing sensor 130 is used to detect the surface shape of the contact object. Specifically, the shape sensing sensor 130 may be a capacitive sensor, a strain gauge sensor, or a micro laser ranging sensor that measures external pressure by using a change in pole distance.

[0039] The slip sensor 140 is used to detect the slippage degree between the electronic artificial skin and the contact object, that is, the slip sensor 140 can detect the surface roughness of the contact object.

[0040] The use of a variety of different sensors to form the sensing and identification module 100 can not only greatly reduce the manufacturing difficulty and cost of the electronic artificial skin, but also improve the perception accuracy of the electronic artificial skin to external physical quantities.

[0041] In another embodiment, the sensing identification module 100 may also be a combination of the temperature sensor 110 and an image sensor. The image sensor can obtain the pressure, shape and surface roughness of the external contact object by capturing an image of the external contact object and utilizing a very sophisticated algorithm.

[0042] In one embodiment, if Figure 2As shown, the temperature sensor 110, the pressure sensor 120, the shape sensing sensor 130 and the slip sensor 140 are arranged in an array, and the sensing recognition module 100 is formed by arranging a plurality of array units, and adjacent array units are independently arranged or partially overlapped. Specifically, in each array unit, the temperature sensor 110 and the pressure sensor 120 are alternately arranged along the circumference of the array unit, and one of the shape sensing sensor 130 and the slip sensor 140 is arranged at the center of each array unit.

[0043] It should be noted that when the array units are independently arranged, adjacent array units do not share the same sensor (including the temperature sensor 110, the pressure sensor 120, the shape sensing sensor 130 and the slip sensor 140); when the array units are partially overlapped, some sensors of the adjacent array units are shared.

[0044] Such an arrangement makes the distribution density of the temperature sensor 110 and the pressure sensor 120 higher, which is beneficial to improving the accuracy of temperature detection and pressure detection.

[0045] Furthermore, in one embodiment, the distribution density of the shape sensing sensors 130 is greater than the distribution density of the slip sensors 140 . Specifically, the distribution density of the shape sensing sensors 130 is 2 times, 3 times, or 4 times the distribution density of the slip sensors 140 , etc., which are not listed here one by one.

[0046] In another embodiment, if Figure 3 As shown, the temperature sensor 110, the pressure sensor 120, the shape sensing sensor 130 and the slip sensor 140 are arranged in an array, and the sensing identification module 100 is formed by arranging a plurality of array units, and adjacent array units are independently arranged or partially overlapped. Specifically, in each array unit, the temperature sensor 110, the pressure sensor 120, the shape sensing sensor 130 and the slip sensor 140 are alternately arranged along the circumference of the array unit, and in each array unit, the number A of the temperature sensors 110, the number B of the pressure sensors 120, the number C of the shape sensing sensors 130 and the number D of the slip sensors 140 satisfy A=B=2C=2D.

[0047] Such an arrangement reduces the difficulty of distributing the sensing and identifying modules 100 , and increases the distribution density of the shape sensing sensors 130 and the slip sensors 140 .

[0048] In one embodiment, the distribution density of the sensing and recognition modules 100 on the palm side of the simulation glove is greater than the distribution density of the sensing and recognition modules 100 on the back side. Specifically, the distribution density of the sensing and recognition modules 100 on the palm side is 2 to 5 per square centimeter, and the distribution density of the sensing and recognition modules 100 on the back side is 1 to 3 per square centimeter.

[0049] like Figure 1 As shown, the temperature control module 200 is sandwiched between the second flexible film layer 400 and the third flexible film layer 500, and the temperature control module 200 can adjust the temperature of the electronic artificial skin itself to keep the electronic artificial skin at a suitable working temperature.

[0050] Specifically, the overall thickness of the temperature control module 200 is about 1 mm.

[0051] In one embodiment, the temperature control module 200 includes an electric heater, and a plurality of electric heaters are distributed along the extended surface of the electronic simulated skin, so that the electric heaters can evenly heat the entire electronic simulated skin.

[0052] It should be noted that the extension surface of the electronic simulated skin is the extension surface of the first flexible film layer 300 (or the second flexible film layer 400 or the third flexible film layer 500). Usually, the electronic simulated skin is attached to the surface of a covering (including but not limited to the hand of a robot). Therefore, the extension surface of the electronic simulated skin is the surface of the covering.

[0053] Furthermore, in one embodiment, the electric heater is a resistance wire, a single resistance wire is spirally coiled and distributed between the second flexible film layer 400 and the third flexible film layer 500 , or a plurality of resistance wires are grid-shaped and distributed between the second flexible film layer 400 and the third flexible film layer 500 .

[0054] In another embodiment, the electric heater may also be a planar distributed resistor.

[0055] In one embodiment, the temperature control module 200 includes a cooling circuit, which is distributed in a spiral or grid shape between the second flexible film layer 400 and the third flexible film layer 500, and the refrigerant can pass through the cooling circuit to dissipate heat from the electronic simulated skin.

[0056] Specifically, in one embodiment, a groove is provided in one or both of the second flexible film layer 400 and the third flexible film layer 500 to form a cooling circuit.

[0057] In another embodiment, a cooling pipe is laid between the second flexible membrane layer 400 and the third flexible membrane layer 500 to form a cooling circuit.

[0058] It should be noted that the simulation gloves can be divided into winter and summer types. In the cold winter, it is only necessary to set up an electric heater to heat the simulation gloves, and in the hot summer, it is only necessary to set up a cooling circuit.

[0059] Of course, in other environments with large temperature changes, an electric heater and a cooling circuit can also be set up at the same time to maintain the temperature of the electronic simulated skin between 25°C and 40°C.

[0060] Firstly, by providing the first flexible film layer 300, the second flexible film layer 400 and the third flexible film layer 500 which are stacked and distributed in sequence, the electronic simulated skin of the present application has the multi-layer structure of human skin and the relatively soft characteristics.

[0061] Furthermore, by providing the sensing and identifying module 100, and the sensing and identifying module 100 is capable of identifying the temperature, pressure, shape and surface roughness of the outside world, the electronic simulated skin of the present application has diversified recognition capabilities.

[0062] Furthermore, the electronic simulated skin provided in the present application is also provided with a temperature control module 200. On the one hand, it can enable the electronic simulated skin to simulate the real skin working temperature. On the other hand, when the external temperature is too cold or too hot, or when the electronic simulated skin itself generates a large amount of heat, the temperature control module 200 can effectively adjust the temperature of the simulated electronic skin.

[0063] In summary, the electronic simulated skin of the present application highly simulates the real skin state in terms of multi-layer structure, softness, sensing and recognition ability, and temperature control ability, and has high application value and commercial value.

[0064] The present application also provides a simulation glove, which includes an adapter and the electronic simulation skin described in any one of the above embodiments, and the sensing recognition module 100 and the temperature control module 200 are respectively electrically connected to an external control module through the adapter.

[0065] The present application also provides a robot, which includes a machine body, a control module and the simulation gloves described in any one of the above embodiments, the simulation gloves are mounted on the hand of the machine body, the control module is arranged on the head of the machine body, and the control module is electrically connected to the sensing and recognition module 100 and the temperature control module 200 through an adapter.

[0066] Specifically, the sensing and identifying module 100 can transmit the collected information to the control module, and the control module can control the actions and operations of the temperature control module 200 and the robot body respectively according to the information transmitted by the sensing and identifying module 100 .

[0067] The technical features of the above-described embodiments may be arbitrarily combined. To make the description concise, not all possible combinations of the technical features in the above-described embodiments are described. However, as long as there is no contradiction in the combination of these technical features, they should be considered to be within the scope of this specification.

[0068] The above-described embodiments only express several implementation methods of the present application, and the descriptions thereof are relatively specific and detailed, but they cannot be understood as limiting the scope of the patent application. It should be pointed out that, for a person of ordinary skill in the art, several variations and improvements can be made without departing from the concept of the present application, and these all belong to the protection scope of the present application. Therefore, the scope of patent protection of the present application shall be subject to the attached claims.

[0069] In the description of the present application, it should be understood that the terms "center", "longitudinal", "lateral", "length", "width", "thickness", "up", "down", "front", "back", "left", "right", "vertical", "horizontal", "top", "bottom", "inside", "outside", "clockwise", "counterclockwise", "axial", "radial", "circumferential" and the like indicate orientations or positional relationships based on the orientations or positional relationships shown in the accompanying drawings, and are only for the convenience of describing the present application and simplifying the description, and do not indicate or imply that the referred device or element must have a specific orientation, be constructed and operated in a specific orientation, and therefore should not be understood as a limitation on the present application.

[0070] In addition, the terms "first" and "second" are used for descriptive purposes only and should not be understood as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly indicating the number of the indicated technical features. Therefore, the features defined as "first" and "second" may explicitly or implicitly include at least one of the features. In the description of this application, the meaning of "plurality" is at least two, such as two, three, etc., unless otherwise clearly and specifically defined.

[0071] In this application, unless otherwise clearly specified and limited, the terms "installed", "connected", "connected", "fixed" and the like 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 a direct connection or an indirect connection through an intermediate medium, it can be the internal connection of two elements or the interaction relationship between two elements, unless otherwise clearly defined. For ordinary technicians in this field, the specific meanings of the above terms in this application can be understood according to specific circumstances.

[0072] In the present application, unless otherwise clearly specified and limited, a first feature being “above” or “below” a second feature may mean 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, a first feature being “above”, “above”, and “above” a second feature may mean that the first feature is directly above or obliquely above the second feature, or simply means that the first feature is higher in level than the second feature. A first feature being “below”, “below”, and “below” a second feature may mean that the first feature is directly below or obliquely below the second feature, or simply means that the first feature is lower in level than the second feature.

[0073] It should be noted that when an element is referred to as being "fixed to" or "disposed on" another element, it may be directly on the other element or there may be a central element. When an element is considered to be "connected to" another element, it may be directly connected to the other element or there may be a central element at the same time. The terms "vertical", "horizontal", "upper", "lower", "left", "right" and similar expressions used herein are for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to be the only implementation method.

[0074] Unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as those commonly understood by those skilled in the art to which this application belongs. The terms used herein in the specification of this application are only for the purpose of describing specific embodiments and are not intended to limit this application. The term "and / or" used herein includes any and all combinations of one or more of the related listed items.

Claims

1. An electronic artificial skin, characterized in that: The electronic artificial skin comprises a sensing and identifying module (100), a temperature control module (200), and a first flexible film layer (300), a second flexible film layer (400), and a third flexible film layer (500) which are stacked and distributed in sequence. The sensing and identifying module (100) is sandwiched between the first flexible film layer (300) and the second flexible film layer (400), and the sensing and identifying module (100) can sense external temperature, pressure, shape, and surface roughness through the first flexible film layer (300); the temperature control module (200) is sandwiched between the second flexible film layer (400) and the third flexible film layer (500), and the temperature control module (200) can adjust the temperature of the electronic artificial skin itself.

2. The electronic artificial skin according to claim 1, characterized in that: The induction recognition module (100) comprises a temperature sensor (110), a pressure sensor (120), a shape perception sensor (130) and a slip sensor (140); the temperature sensor (110) is used to detect the temperature of external air or a contact object; the pressure sensor (120) is used to detect the magnitude of an external tensile force or pressure applied to the electronic simulated skin; the shape perception sensor (130) is used to detect the surface shape of the contact object; and the slip sensor (140) is used to detect the degree of slip between the electronic simulated skin and the contact object.

3. The electronic artificial skin according to claim 2, characterized in that: The temperature sensor (110), the pressure sensor (120), the shape sensing sensor (130) and the slip sensor (140) are arranged in an array, and the sensing identification module (100) is formed by arranging a plurality of array units, and adjacent array units are independently arranged or partially overlapped; In each of the array units, the temperature sensor (110) and the pressure sensor (120) are alternately arranged along the circumference of the array unit, and one of the shape sensing sensor (130) and the slip sensor (140) is arranged at the center of each of the array units.

4. The electronic artificial skin according to claim 2, characterized in that: The temperature sensor (110), the pressure sensor (120), the shape sensing sensor (130) and the slip sensor (140) are arranged in an array, and the sensing identification module (100) is formed by arranging a plurality of array units, and adjacent array units are independently arranged or partially overlapped; In each of the array units, the temperature sensor (110), the pressure sensor (120), the shape sensing sensor (130) and the slip sensor (140) are alternately arranged along the circumference of the array unit. In each of the array units, the number A of the temperature sensors (110), the number B of the pressure sensors (120), the number C of the shape sensing sensors (130) and the number D of the slip sensors (140) satisfy A=B=2C=2D.

5. The electronic artificial skin according to claim 1, characterized in that: The temperature control module (200) comprises an electric heater, and a plurality of the electric heaters are distributed along the extended surface of the electronic simulated skin.

6. The electronic artificial skin according to claim 5, characterized in that: The electric heater is a resistance wire, a single resistance wire is distributed in a spirally coiled state between the second flexible film layer (400) and the third flexible film layer (500), or a plurality of resistance wires are distributed in a grid state between the second flexible film layer (400) and the third flexible film layer (500).

7. The electronic artificial skin according to claim 1, characterized in that: The temperature control module (200) comprises a cooling circuit, which is distributed between the second flexible film layer (400) and the third flexible film layer (500) in a spiral winding shape or a grid shape, and a refrigerant can pass through the cooling circuit to dissipate heat from the electronic simulated skin.

8. The electronic artificial skin according to claim 1, characterized in that: The first flexible film layer (300), the second flexible film layer (400) and the third flexible film layer (500) are silicone film layers, or the first flexible film layer (300), the second flexible film layer (400) and the third flexible film layer (500) are graphene-based film layers.

9. A simulation glove, characterized in that: It comprises an adapter and the electronic simulated skin according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the sensing identification module (100) and the temperature control module (200) are respectively electrically connected to an external control module through the adapter.

10. A robot, characterized in that: It comprises a machine body, a control module and the simulation glove as claimed in claim 9, wherein the simulation glove is put on the hand of the machine body, the control module is arranged on the head of the machine body, and the control module is electrically connected to the sensing identification module (100) and the temperature control module (200) respectively through the adapter.

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