3D printed triboelectric nanogenerator as self-powered human-machine interactive sensor for breathing-based language expression

Immersive communications rely on smart perception based on diversified and augmented sensing and feedback technologies. However, the increasing of functional components also raises the issue of increased system complexity. Here, we propose a modular soft glove with multimodal sensing and feedback functions by exploring and utilizing the multiple properties of glove materials. With a single design of basic structure, the main functional unit possesses triboelectric-based sensing of static and dynamic contact, vibration, strain, and pneumatic actuation. Additionally, the same unit is also capable of offering pneumatic tactile haptic feedback and electroresistive thermal haptic feedback. Together with a machine learning algorithm, the proposed glove not only performs real-time detection of dexterous hand motion and direct feedback but also realizes intelligent object recognition and augmented feedback, which significantly enhance the communication and perception of more comprehensive information. In general, this glove utilizes a facile designed sensing and feedback device to achieve dual-way and multimodal communication among humans, machines, and the virtual world via smart perceptions.

Soft Modular Glove with Multimodal Sensing and Augmented Haptic Feedback Enabled by Materials' Multifunctionalities.

The rapid growth of the electronics industry and proliferation of electronic materials and telecommunications technologies has led to the release of a massive amount of untreated electronic waste (e‐waste) into the environment. Consequently, catastrophic environmental damage at the microbiome level and serious human health diseases threaten the natural fate of the planet. Currently, the demand for wearable electronics for applications in personalized medicine, electronic skins (e‐skins), and health monitoring is substantial and growing. Therefore, “green” characteristics such as biodegradability, self‐healing, and biocompatibility ensure the future application of wearable electronics and e‐skins in biomedical engineering and bioanalytical sciences. Leveraging the biodegradability, sustainability, and biocompatibility of natural materials will dramatically influence the fabrication of environmentally friendly e‐skins and wearable electronics. Here, the molecular and structural characteristics of biological skins and artificial e‐skins are discussed. The focus then turns to the biodegradable materials, including natural and synthetic‐polymer‐based materials, and their recent applications in the development of biodegradable e‐skin in wearable sensors, robotics, and human–machine interfaces (HMIs). Finally, the main challenges and outlook regarding the preparation and application of biodegradable e‐skins are critically discussed in a near‐future scenario, which is expected to lead to the next generation of biodegradable e‐skins.

Advances in Biodegradable Electronic Skin: Material Progress and Recent Applications in Sensing, Robotics, and Human–Machine Interfaces

With the vigorous development of the Internet of Things and artificial intelligence, the active sensing system based on triboelectric nanogenerators plays an excellent performance potential and application value as a pioneering technology for smart manufacturing. Nevertheless, achieving material innovation to strike a good balance between active sensing systems and environmental friendliness remains a difficult task. As the most abundant biopolymer on earth, the sustainability potential and excellent performance of cellulose are of great importance for the development of smart sensing systems. This review intends to provide a new perspective on the sustainability of smart active sensing systems to design and fabricate cellulosic triboelectric materials for self‐powered sensing systems. Herein, the structure and advantageous properties of cellulosic triboelectric materials are briefly described. Furthermore, the structure–property–application relationship of the materials is addressed from the perspective of material design and structure optimization. Next, the latest applications of cellulose triboelectric materials are comprehensively described in smart sensing fields such as environmental monitoring, smart home, smart medical, human–machine interaction, and the Internet of everything. Lastly, the current challenges and future developments of cellulose triboelectric materials for smart sensor systems are presented.

Sustainable Triboelectric Materials for Smart Active Sensing Systems

Electronic textiles (e-textiles) hold great promise for serving as next-generation wearable electronics owing to their inherent flexible, air-permeable, and lightweight characteristics. However, these e-textiles are of limited performance mainly because of lacking powerful materials combination. Herein, a versatile e-textile through a simple, high-efficiency mixed-dimensional assembly of 2D MXene nanosheets and 1D silver nanowires (AgNWs) are presented. The effective complementary actions of MXene and AgNWs endow the e-textiles with superior integrated performances including self-powered pressure sensing, ultrafast joule heating, and highly efficient electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding. The textile-based self-powered smart sensor systems obtained through the screen-printed assembly of MXene-based supercapacitor and pressure sensor are flexible and lightweight, showing ultrahigh specific capacitance (2390 mF cm-2 ), robust areal energy density (119.5 µWh cm-2 ), excellent sensitivity (474.8 kPa-1 ), and low detection limit (1 Pa). Furthermore, the interconnected conductive MXene/AgNWs network enables the e-textile with ultrafast temperature response (10.4 °C s-1 ) and outstanding EMI shielding effectiveness of ≈66.4 dB. Therefore, the proposed mixed-dimensional assembly design creates a multifunctional e-textile that offers a practical paradigm for next-generation smart flexible electronics.

Jie Xiao

Papers

Bamboo-inspired self-powered triboelectric sensor for touch sensing and sitting posture monitoring