Morphological computation in tactile sensing: The role of wrinkle

This paper presents a new approach for active tactile sensation that utilizes soft morphological computation. This work is inspired by human finger's wet-induced wrinkles, which appear after a long time soaking in water, and has been indicated as an efficient means for enhancement of gripping in wet environment. We created a tactile sensing system that is an integration of actuation (pneumatic actuator) and sensing elements (strain gauges). This device can change its morphology so that the posture of embedded sensing elements can vary, then generate different responses depending on the sensing tasks. As a result, this device can actively select its sensing functions depending on different sensing tasks. In this paper, the sensing device is both sensitive to indentation contact and sliding action on its surface by using only one type of strain gauge. This preliminary work is an example of soft morphological control in sensing, and expected to open a new trend in development of tactile sensing system.