A Coupled Piezoelectric Sensor for MMG-Based Human-Machine Interfaces

Mechanomyography (MMG) is a technique of recording muscles activity that may be considered a suitable choice for human–machine interfaces (HMI). The design of sensors used for MMG and their spatial distribution are among the deciding factors behind their successful implementation to HMI. We present...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Mateusz Szumilas, Michał Władziński, Krzysztof Wildner
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2021-12-01
Series:Sensors
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/1424-8220/21/24/8380
Description
Summary:Mechanomyography (MMG) is a technique of recording muscles activity that may be considered a suitable choice for human–machine interfaces (HMI). The design of sensors used for MMG and their spatial distribution are among the deciding factors behind their successful implementation to HMI. We present a new design of a MMG sensor, which consists of two coupled piezoelectric discs in a single housing. The sensor’s functionality was verified in two experimental setups related to typical MMG applications: an estimation of the force/MMG relationship under static conditions and a neural network-based gesture classification. The results showed exponential relationships between acquired MMG and exerted force (for up to 60% of the maximal voluntary contraction) alongside good classification accuracy (94.3%) of eight hand motions based on MMG from a single-site acquisition at the forearm. The simplification of the MMG-based HMI interface in terms of spatial arrangement is rendered possible with the designed sensor.
ISSN:1424-8220