PDF(Pubmed)
Abstract：
An investigation was performed to develop a process to design and manufacture a 3-D smart skin with an embedded network of distributed sensors for non-developable (or doubly curved) surfaces. A smart skin is the sensing component of a smart structure, allowing such structures to gather data from their surrounding environments to make control and maintenance decisions. Such smart skins are desired across a wide variety of domains, particularly for those devices where their surfaces require high sensitivity to external loads or environmental changes such as human-assisting robots, medical devices, wearable health components, etc. However, the fabrication and deployment of a network of distributed sensors on non-developable surfaces faces steep challenges. These challenges include the conformal coverage of a target object without causing prohibitive stresses in the sensor interconnects and ensuring positional accuracy in the skin sensor deployment positions, as well as packaging challenges resulting from the thin, flexible form factor of the skin. In this study, novel and streamlined processes for making such 3-D smart skins were developed from the initial sensor network design to the final integrated skin assembly. Specifically, the process involved the design of the network itself (for which a physical simulation-based optimization was developed), the deployment of the network to a targeted 3D surface (for which a specialized tool was designed and implemented), and the assembly of the final skin (for which a novel process based on dip coating was developed and implemented.).
摘要：
进行了一项调查，以开发一种设计和制造具有嵌入式分布式传感器网络的3-D智能皮肤的过程，用于不可开发（或双重弯曲）表面。智能皮肤是智能结构的传感组件，允许此类结构从其周围环境中收集数据以做出控制和维护决策。这样的智能皮肤需要跨越各种各样的领域，特别是对于那些表面对外部负载或环境变化需要高灵敏度的设备，例如人类辅助机器人，医疗器械,可穿戴健康组件，等。然而,在不可开发的表面上制造和部署分布式传感器网络面临着严峻的挑战。这些挑战包括目标物体的共形覆盖,而不会在传感器互连中造成过高的应力,并确保皮肤传感器部署位置的位置准确性。以及由于变薄而带来的包装挑战，灵活的皮肤形状因子。在这项研究中,从最初的传感器网络设计到最终的集成皮肤组装，开发了用于制造这种3-D智能皮肤的新颖和流线型的过程。具体来说,该过程涉及网络本身的设计（为此开发了基于物理仿真的优化），将网络部署到目标3D表面（为此设计和实施了专用工具），和最终皮肤的组装（为此，开发并实施了基于浸涂的新颖工艺。).
