INNOVATIVE TEXTILE-BASED FORCE SENSOR

In this study, a flexible force sensor with silver and carbon mixed conductive nanoparticles was designed and tested for use in the robotics field. Conductive inks composed of Ag:C nanoparticles were printed on polyamide-based taffeta label fabric by pad printing method in order to fabricate a capacitive force sensor. The sensitivity of this capacitive sensor structure was tested and evaluated by loading different weights. The results showed that as the concentration of carbon nanoparticles in the conductive ink increases, a decrease in capacitive energy loading is observed. Hence, the production of a capacitive force sensor form was carried out with the appropriate number of printing layers and Ag:C concentration. The focus of research lies in the discovery and development of durable flexible force sensors for motion tracking in robotic applications.