Ionic Liquid-Optoelectronics-Based Multimodal Soft Sensor

Multimodal soft sensors have attracted significant attention due to their ability to simultaneously measure multiple physical properties of objects, offering immense potential for the use of smart wearable devices and soft robots. However, achieving simultaneous detection of multiple physical quantities and integrating these functions in a limited sensor space remains a challenge. In this article, a novel multimodal soft sensor is proposed for the simultaneous detection of mechanical stretching and bending deformations, which is based on room temperature ionic liquid (RTIL) optoelectronics. The method employs RTIL as the light propagation medium and shares the same geometric unit with optoelectronics, effectively reducing the geometry of the sensor. It is capable of detecting three deformation modes, namely, stretching, bending, and simultaneous stretching and bending. The compound deformation of stretching and bending is decoupled by detecting the difference between RTIL and optoelectronic signals, thus combining with the deep learning of long and short memory (LSTM) neural networks. Moreover, the proposed multimodal sensor exhibits high sensitivity, wide measurement range, and good stability, making it a promising option for future applications in soft robots and wearable devices.