Researchers at Cornell University have developed an octopus-inspired skin, which can bend and stretch to nearly six times its original size while changing colors as it is deformed.
A hyper-elastic light-emitting capacitor (HLEC) is at the heart of the new electroluminescent material. It’s composed of a pair of electrodes encased within a silicone base, and can maintain its display while being stretched 480 percent — four times more than any previous luminescent skin. It can be twisted and rolled in a number of ways, which the team hopes that someday will allow it to be worn on our sleeves or cover entire robots.
Hydrogel layers on either side conduct electricity, while in between is an insulating elastomer sheet with embedded phosphors that illuminate as electricity moves through them. The elastomer changes luminance and capacitance when stretched. Different metals will emit different wavelengths of light. For example, the presence of copper and magnesium reveal blue and yellow, respectively.
A healthcare robot that reacts to a patient’s mood or an autonomous vehicle with an information display interface that can be changed based on the passenger’s needs may sound futuristic, but thanks to such advancements, they may not be as far down the road as you’d think. According to the group, HLEC could lead to significant strides in the medical, transportation, electronic communication and other industries.
“You could have a rubber band that goes around your arm that also displays information,” says Cornell University graduate student Chris Larson. “You could be in a meeting and have a rubber band-like device on your arm and could be checking your email. That’s obviously in the future, but that’s the direction we’re looking in.”
To demonstrate their proof-of-concept, the researchers first integrated the material into a soft robotic system that moved a bit like an inchworm. Three six-layer HLEC panels were bound together to form the crawling bot, with the top four layers making up the skin and the bottom two the pneumatic actuators. The chambers were alternately inflated and deflated, with the resulting curvature creating the locomotion.
Although still in its infancy, this artificial skin has some exciting potential use cases. For one, it could lead to the development of fully-wearable technology that forms to our bodies. Until then, however, you can read all about it in the team’s paper here.
[Images: Chris Larson / Cornell University]