Chen Gen: Robots will have human touch skin

文/Chen Gen

Robots always feel hard and cold. Even "Ex Machina", which can pass the Turing test and is comparable to human thinking, cannot change the reality of its lack of flexibility. In order to solve this pain point, scientists at Stanford University in the United States have developed a multi-layer thin film sensor - an artificial electronic skin that can initiate a self-healing function that rearranges when damaged. A paper report on the research and development results was published in the latest issue of Science magazine.

Why can artificial skin be automatically repaired? The answer lies in the fact that the backbone of each layer of skin is made up of long molecular chains that are regularly connected by dynamic hydrogen bonds, just like the molecular chains that hold together the double helices of a DNA strand. This allows the material to be stretched repeatedly. Stretch without tearing.

So, how does this artificial skin achieve self-healing? According to the researchers, the artificial electronic skin imitates the characteristics of human skin with many layers. A single layer is as thin as 1 micron or even thinner, and 10 or more layers stacked together are no thicker than a piece of paper, and each layer All have different functions.

During the process of damage and healing of this kind of artificial skin, the division of labor of each layer of skin is clear and orderly. Everyone performs their own duties and selectively heals itself to restore the overall function. Some layers may feel pressure, some may feel temperature, and still others may feel tension. Materials in different layers may be designed to sense thermal, mechanical, or electrical changes. This newly evolved immune mechanism reconstructs tissue with its original hierarchical structure through complex processes involving molecular recognition and signaling.

In the newly developed artificial skin, the researchers used polypropylene glycol and polydimethylsiloxane. The two polymers and their respective composites are immiscible, and hydrogen bonds make them good to each other. are bonded together to create a durable, multi-layered material. Both materials are designed to be as sticky and elastic to external stresses as human skin over the appropriate temperature range.

Based on this, scientists will realize the use of flexible, conformable and even close to human skin materials to make electronic devices and smart terminals warmer and easier to use. This advance could usher in a new era of robots with self-healing synthetic "skin" similar to human touch.

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