ProtoHand: Solderless Prototyping of Electrical Circuits on a Soft Artificial Hand with Liquid Metal

In this letter, we propose and demonstrate ProtoHand, which is a soft artificial hand that can work as a universal platform for prototyping electrical circuits similar to a breadboard. ProtoHand is made of flexible and transparent polydimethyl siloxane. ProtoHand has multiple channels filled with liquid metal beneath the surface, like the blood vessels of a hand. Electric components, such as resistors and capacitors, can be inserted by piercing into ProtoHand and electrically connected via the conductive liquid metal. Soldering is unnecessary, and the parts can be removed without leakage of the liquid metal; therefore, prototyping of electric circuits can be performed on this soft hand in a reusable manner. ProtoHand will help the design of multifunctional robot hands and could also be an excellent educational tool.