TY - JOUR
T1 - A comparison of force sensing for applications in prosthetic haptic feedback
AU - Wieser, Megan
AU - Liu, Jinglin
AU - Hernandez, Priscilla
AU - La Belle, Jeffrey T.
N1 - Funding Information:
A special thank you to Dr. Jeffrey LaBelle for his mentorship and expertise in the development of this project and to Mary Kate Sciuba and Austin Feldman for their contribution to initial data collection and research and in laying the foundation for this work.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2019 by Begell House, Inc.
Copyright:
Copyright 2019 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.
PY - 2019
Y1 - 2019
N2 - The current study presents a comparison of two load sensor designs that can be applied toward haptic feedback sensing in upper limb prosthetics. A lab-standard capacitive load cell sensor is discussed, which is succeeded by the proposal of an electrochemical sensor. Experiments were conducted primarily as a proof-of-principle study to evaluate sensor characteristics for prosthetic applications. The aim is to address the need for minimally invasive, cost-effective prosthetic sensor technologies, as the investigated sensor designs conceptualize applications of average grip forces. Thus, force requirements for the sensors were determined to be 250–500 N per the average maximum grip strength of healthy adults. Comparable to a commercial gold-standard capacitive load cell design, a lab-standard load cell sensor was inexpensively manufactured using conductive foam. The lab-standard design was improved upon by employing electrochemical techniques and CP-9000, a thermoplastic elastomer material, to form an electrochemical sensor for enhanced sensitivity. Sustained loads ranging from 0.49 to 2.45 N resulted in average maximum current readouts of − 1.25 × 10⁻1 to − 4.25 × 10⁻1 for the lab-standard sensor, and − 5.95 μA to − 7.85 μA for the electrochemical sensor. The electrochemical sensor was reproducible and demonstrated the potential to discriminate between various loads. Force requirements were not reached; however, future studies will seek to increase the mechanical strength of the electrochemical sensor. As the initial electrochemical sensor design provides a potential method for low-cost computer-based prosthetics, thermoplastic elastomer materials with increased elastic and mechanical strength properties will be investigated.
AB - The current study presents a comparison of two load sensor designs that can be applied toward haptic feedback sensing in upper limb prosthetics. A lab-standard capacitive load cell sensor is discussed, which is succeeded by the proposal of an electrochemical sensor. Experiments were conducted primarily as a proof-of-principle study to evaluate sensor characteristics for prosthetic applications. The aim is to address the need for minimally invasive, cost-effective prosthetic sensor technologies, as the investigated sensor designs conceptualize applications of average grip forces. Thus, force requirements for the sensors were determined to be 250–500 N per the average maximum grip strength of healthy adults. Comparable to a commercial gold-standard capacitive load cell design, a lab-standard load cell sensor was inexpensively manufactured using conductive foam. The lab-standard design was improved upon by employing electrochemical techniques and CP-9000, a thermoplastic elastomer material, to form an electrochemical sensor for enhanced sensitivity. Sustained loads ranging from 0.49 to 2.45 N resulted in average maximum current readouts of − 1.25 × 10⁻1 to − 4.25 × 10⁻1 for the lab-standard sensor, and − 5.95 μA to − 7.85 μA for the electrochemical sensor. The electrochemical sensor was reproducible and demonstrated the potential to discriminate between various loads. Force requirements were not reached; however, future studies will seek to increase the mechanical strength of the electrochemical sensor. As the initial electrochemical sensor design provides a potential method for low-cost computer-based prosthetics, thermoplastic elastomer materials with increased elastic and mechanical strength properties will be investigated.
KW - Amperometric scan
KW - Capacitive load cell
KW - Conductive polyurethane
KW - Cyclic voltammetry
KW - Electrochemistry
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U2 - 10.1615/CritRevBiomedEng.2019026514
DO - 10.1615/CritRevBiomedEng.2019026514
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85067971521
SN - 0278-940X
VL - 47
SP - 109
EP - 119
JO - Critical Reviews in Biomedical Engineering
JF - Critical Reviews in Biomedical Engineering
IS - 2
ER -