[Asia Economy Reporter Junho Hwang] Domestic researchers have developed artificial skin that resembles the skin on human hands. Utilizing this artificial skin is expected to enhance the object manipulation and operational capabilities when attached to prosthetic hands, industrial grippers, and industrial robot hands.
The National Research Foundation of Korea announced on the 28th that the research results by Professors Hyungsoon Park and Taeksu Kim's team at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology were published in the international journal on new materials, Advanced Functional Materials.
The research team observed the skin on the human palm and structured it into the outer skin layer, subcutaneous fat layer, and muscle layer to analyze each characteristic. They identified that the asymmetric physical properties of the subcutaneous fat layer are the key element creating functional advantages. The combination of soft fatty tissue and tough fibrous tissue allows flexibility under pressure while strongly resisting deformation caused by twisting or pulling.
Based on this, the team developed artificial skin that mimics the characteristics of the palm. Using porous latex and silicone with multiple pores, they fabricated a triple-layer artificial skin possessing the same nonlinear and asymmetric properties as human palm skin.
This is an illustration explaining the triple-layered artificial skin structure that mimics human skin anatomy.
This artificial skin’s pores compress easily under pressure and deform readily to fit the shape of objects. Additionally, the tough latex septa between the pores exhibit strong resistance to twisting and pulling, enabling a firm grip on target objects.
The research team evaluated that the triple-layer artificial skin improved manipulability by 30% compared to conventional single-layer silicone artificial skin.
The team plans to conduct further research on designing optimal skin structures tailored to specific uses by adjusting the texture, thickness, and shape of the artificial skin, considering the size, hardness, and surface characteristics of objects to be manipulated, such as small items like screws or smooth, fragile objects like eggs.
Professor Hyungsoon Park (left) and his research team who developed a robot hand with excellent manipulability like a human hand.
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