Review of Recent Bio-Inspired Design and Manufacturing of Whisker Tactile Sensors
Whisker sensors are a class of tactile sensors that have recently attracted attention. Inspired by mammals’ whiskers known as mystacial vibrissae, they have displayed tremendous potential in a variety of applications e.g., robotics, underwater vehicles, minimally invasive surgeries, and leak detecti...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2022-04-01
|
| Series: | Sensors |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/1424-8220/22/7/2705 |
| _version_ | 1797437620019527680 |
|---|---|
| author | Mohamad-Ammar Sayegh Hammam Daraghma Samir Mekid Salem Bashmal |
| author_facet | Mohamad-Ammar Sayegh Hammam Daraghma Samir Mekid Salem Bashmal |
| author_sort | Mohamad-Ammar Sayegh |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Whisker sensors are a class of tactile sensors that have recently attracted attention. Inspired by mammals’ whiskers known as mystacial vibrissae, they have displayed tremendous potential in a variety of applications e.g., robotics, underwater vehicles, minimally invasive surgeries, and leak detection. This paper provides a supplement to the recent tactile sensing techniques’ designs of whiskers that only sense at their base, as well as the materials employed, and manufacturing techniques. The article delves into the technical specifications of these sensors, such as the resolution, measurement range, sensitivity, durability, and recovery time, which determine their performance. The sensors’ sensitivity varies depending on the measured physical quantity; for example, the pressure sensors had an intermediate sensitivity of 58%/Pa and a response time of around 90 ms, whereas the force sensors that function based on piezoelectric effects exhibited good linearity in the measurements with a resolution of 3 µN and sensitivity of 0.1682 mV/µN. Some sensors were used to perform spatial mapping and the identification of the geometry and roughness of objects with a reported resolution of 25 nm. The durability and recovery time showed a wide range of values, with the maximum durability being 10,000 cycles and the shortest recovery time being 5 ms. Furthermore, the paper examines the fabrication of whiskers at the micro- and nanoscales, as well as their contributions to mechanical and thermal behavior. The commonly used manufacturing techniques of 3D printing, PDMS casting, and screen printing were used in addition to several micro and nanofabrication techniques such as photolithography, etching, and chemical vapor deposition. Lastly, the paper discusses the main potential applications of these sensors and potential research gaps in this field. In particular, the operation of whisker sensors under high temperatures or high pressure requires further investigation, as does the design of sensors to explore larger topologies. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T11:24:57Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-07c5fa322b7943c5871ab9b97718bb82 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1424-8220 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T11:24:57Z |
| publishDate | 2022-04-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Sensors |
| spelling | doaj.art-07c5fa322b7943c5871ab9b97718bb822023-12-01T00:03:53ZengMDPI AGSensors1424-82202022-04-01227270510.3390/s22072705Review of Recent Bio-Inspired Design and Manufacturing of Whisker Tactile SensorsMohamad-Ammar Sayegh0Hammam Daraghma1Samir Mekid2Salem Bashmal3Department of Mechanical Engineering, King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals, Dhahran 31261, Saudi ArabiaDepartment of Mechanical Engineering, King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals, Dhahran 31261, Saudi ArabiaDepartment of Mechanical Engineering, King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals, Dhahran 31261, Saudi ArabiaDepartment of Mechanical Engineering, King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals, Dhahran 31261, Saudi ArabiaWhisker sensors are a class of tactile sensors that have recently attracted attention. Inspired by mammals’ whiskers known as mystacial vibrissae, they have displayed tremendous potential in a variety of applications e.g., robotics, underwater vehicles, minimally invasive surgeries, and leak detection. This paper provides a supplement to the recent tactile sensing techniques’ designs of whiskers that only sense at their base, as well as the materials employed, and manufacturing techniques. The article delves into the technical specifications of these sensors, such as the resolution, measurement range, sensitivity, durability, and recovery time, which determine their performance. The sensors’ sensitivity varies depending on the measured physical quantity; for example, the pressure sensors had an intermediate sensitivity of 58%/Pa and a response time of around 90 ms, whereas the force sensors that function based on piezoelectric effects exhibited good linearity in the measurements with a resolution of 3 µN and sensitivity of 0.1682 mV/µN. Some sensors were used to perform spatial mapping and the identification of the geometry and roughness of objects with a reported resolution of 25 nm. The durability and recovery time showed a wide range of values, with the maximum durability being 10,000 cycles and the shortest recovery time being 5 ms. Furthermore, the paper examines the fabrication of whiskers at the micro- and nanoscales, as well as their contributions to mechanical and thermal behavior. The commonly used manufacturing techniques of 3D printing, PDMS casting, and screen printing were used in addition to several micro and nanofabrication techniques such as photolithography, etching, and chemical vapor deposition. Lastly, the paper discusses the main potential applications of these sensors and potential research gaps in this field. In particular, the operation of whisker sensors under high temperatures or high pressure requires further investigation, as does the design of sensors to explore larger topologies.https://www.mdpi.com/1424-8220/22/7/2705whiskerstactile sensorsnanocompositecellulose whiskersmystacial vibrissae |
| spellingShingle | Mohamad-Ammar Sayegh Hammam Daraghma Samir Mekid Salem Bashmal Review of Recent Bio-Inspired Design and Manufacturing of Whisker Tactile Sensors Sensors whiskers tactile sensors nanocomposite cellulose whiskers mystacial vibrissae |
| title | Review of Recent Bio-Inspired Design and Manufacturing of Whisker Tactile Sensors |
| title_full | Review of Recent Bio-Inspired Design and Manufacturing of Whisker Tactile Sensors |
| title_fullStr | Review of Recent Bio-Inspired Design and Manufacturing of Whisker Tactile Sensors |
| title_full_unstemmed | Review of Recent Bio-Inspired Design and Manufacturing of Whisker Tactile Sensors |
| title_short | Review of Recent Bio-Inspired Design and Manufacturing of Whisker Tactile Sensors |
| title_sort | review of recent bio inspired design and manufacturing of whisker tactile sensors |
| topic | whiskers tactile sensors nanocomposite cellulose whiskers mystacial vibrissae |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/1424-8220/22/7/2705 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT mohamadammarsayegh reviewofrecentbioinspireddesignandmanufacturingofwhiskertactilesensors AT hammamdaraghma reviewofrecentbioinspireddesignandmanufacturingofwhiskertactilesensors AT samirmekid reviewofrecentbioinspireddesignandmanufacturingofwhiskertactilesensors AT salembashmal reviewofrecentbioinspireddesignandmanufacturingofwhiskertactilesensors |