The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Sep. 25, 2012
Filed:
Apr. 02, 2009
Gerald E. Loeb, South Pasadena, CA (US);
Nicholas Wettels, Los Angeles, CA (US);
Jeremy Fishel, Long Beach, CA (US);
Chia Hsien (Gary) Lin, Los Angeles, CA (US);
Veronica J. Santos, Tempe, AZ (US);
Raymond Peck, Long Beach, CA (US);
Gerald E. Loeb, South Pasadena, CA (US);
Nicholas Wettels, Los Angeles, CA (US);
Jeremy Fishel, Long Beach, CA (US);
Chia Hsien (Gary) Lin, Los Angeles, CA (US);
Veronica J. Santos, Tempe, AZ (US);
Raymond Peck, Long Beach, CA (US);
University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA (US);
Abstract
Tactile sensors are disclosed that mimic the human fingertip and its touch receptors. The mechanical components are similar to a fingertip, with a rigid core surrounded by a weakly conductive fluid contained within an elastomeric skin. The deformable properties of the finger pad can be used as part of a transduction process. Multiple electrodes can be mounted on the surface of the rigid core and connected to impedance measuring circuitry within the core. External forces deform the fluid path around the electrodes, resulting in a distributed pattern of impedance changes containing information about those forces and the objects that applied them. Strategies are described for extracting features related to the mechanical inputs and using this information for reflexive grip control. Controlling grip force in a prosthetic having sensory feedback information is described. Techniques are described for enhancing the useful force range for impedance sensors by internally texturing the elastomeric skin.