Presentation + Paper
22 April 2021 Pressure mapping using a nanocomposite Smartfoam and electrical impedance tomography
Author Affiliations +
Abstract
Contact pressure sensing and pressure mapping are commonly used in many automotive, healthcare, industrial, and robotics applications. Many commercially available pressure mapping solutions use a dense array of transducers embedded in a pad. However, the pad is relatively thick with noticeable rigid components, and high-resolution pressure mapping systems can be complex, cumbersome, bulky, expensive, and not portable. Thus, the objective of this study was to validate pressure mapping using a commercial Smartfoam interrogated using an electrical impedance tomography (EIT) measurement strategy and algorithm. In addition, the sensitivity of the Smartfoam was enhanced by depositing on its surface a piezoresistive carbon nanotube-based thin film. EIT electrodes were installed along the foam boundaries, thereby eliminating the need for any electrodes or rigid objects on the foam and pressure mapping surface. A custom data acquisition system was employed to apply electrical current excitations while measuring the boundary voltage response across pairs of boundary electrodes. The boundary voltage datasets were used for solving the EIT inverse problem to reconstruct the conductivity distribution of the specimen. Controlled pressure mapping tests were performed by placing different weights of varying contact areas on different positions of the nanocomposite Smartfoam. The EIT results confirmed that the nanocomposite Smartfoam could resolve pressure hotspots at different locations, as well as different magnitudes of contact pressure applied. Real-time pressure mapping was successfully demonstrated, while pressure mapping resolution and accuracy were also characterized. Overall, the system is lightweight, low-profile, and does not use rigid components on the foam surface. Future work will align this method for targeted consumer and healthcare applications.
Conference Presentation
© (2021) COPYRIGHT Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE). Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.
Sijia Li, Yun-An Lin, and Kenneth J. Loh "Pressure mapping using a nanocomposite Smartfoam and electrical impedance tomography", Proc. SPIE 11590, Nano-, Bio-, Info-Tech Sensors and Wearable Systems, 1159007 (22 April 2021); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2582872
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KEYWORDS
Foam

Nanocomposites

Tomography

Data acquisition

Electrodes

Injuries

Medicine

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