Tactile Sensing of Extensor Tendons and Near-Sensor Gesture Recognition for Control of Robotic Hand

A flexible active-matrix piezoelectric tactile sensor array is fabricated and affixed on the back of a hand to monitor the location and deformation of the extensor-tendons associated with a hand gesture. Based on the same thin-film transistor technology, an artificial neural network (ANN) allowing real-time and near-sensor classification of sensor signals is implemented. The integration of the tactile sensor array and an ANN facilitates the development of a compact human-machine interface system for recognition of hand gestures and their mimicry by a robotic hand.