Iontronic Array with a Frequency-Coding Architecture for Transient Tactile Perception

Abstract

The artificial iontronic tactile system is a device that mimics the prompt and transient response of biological skin to mechanical stimuli, thereby enabling robots to perceive their environment. However, the surge in the number of tactile units in space constrains the data acquisition bandwidth when based on individual addressing, impeding the fast transient tactile sensing capability of the iontronic skin (I-skin). Here, we report a Frequency Coded Artificial Ion Mechanoreceptor Skin (FC-AIMS). Equipped with a fast-sensing readout circuit based on frequency coding, an array (8×8) of artificial ion mechanoreceptor (AIM) with high sensitivity (> (1.2 kPa)^-1) and ultra-wide pressure range (120 Pa - 2 MPa) successfully achieve real-time readout (within 2 ms) for the external dynamic spatiotemporal mechanical stimuli. Moreover, the parallel measurement mechanism of the circuit effectively mitigates crosstalk between sensing units. We have demonstrated that combination of proposed device and deep learning has a broad application prospect in intelligent human-machine interaction and real-time dynamic robotic manipulation.