Development of Magnetic Food Texture Sensor with Spring and Sliding Mechanism

To recognize food texture, human has two types of mechanical receptors in the periodontal membrane and percepts force and vibration to teeth. Based on the receptive characteristics and tooth structure, we have developed a magnetic food texture sensor that measures force and vibration simultaneously. However, an elastomer layer which is one of the components of the sensor was difficult to change its modulus and was inferior in durability. To solve such problems, this study proposes a magnetic food texture sensor with a spring and a sliding mechanism. The springs have a wide range of spring coefficient and set a suitable range of force. The sliding mechanism contributes to smooth and durable measurement. This paper explains the design of the food texture sensor. We verify the range and resolution of force, and the repetitive durability through experiments using prototype sensors.