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Teams around the
world are working to develop flexible versions of synthetic skin
that can feel by mimicking the different kinds of sensory
receptors found in human skin.
Powering such systems is a challenge, but now researchers at the
University of Glasgow's School of Engineering have developed a
way to use graphene, an ultra-thin form of carbon, to generate
electricity via solar power.
Graphene, which is just one atom thick, is strong, highly
flexible, electrically conductive and transparent, making it
ideal for gathering the sun's energy to generate power, the
scientists said on Thursday.
Smart prosthetic hands, in particular, can already reproduce
many mechanical properties of human limbs and giving them a
skin-like sense of touch would make them even more useful for
amputees.
Touch-sensitive electronic skin could also be used in robots to
enhance performance and help the machines detect potential
dangers when interacting with humans.
Ravinder Dahiya and his team described how they had integrated
power-generating photovoltaic cells into their electronic skin
in the journal Advanced Functional Materials.
The next goal is to use the same technology to power the motors
need to drive a prosthetic hand. "This could allow the creation
of an entirely energy-autonomous prosthetic limb," Dahiya said.
(Reporting by Ben Hirschler, editing by Louise Heavens)
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