PRENEETA
People’s body parts are amputated due to illness or accidents, and as a result, they also need artificial limbs for everyday tasks. This allows the person to accomplish a lot of his tasks, but he cannot feel the object that the mechanical limb touches. These individuals will eventually be able to feel the objects that these prosthetic limbs hold. An artificial skin that can be placed on a robotic hand to sense objects has been created by IIT Mandi researchers and students.
A multifunctional robotic hand model has been created by IIT Mandi researchers and students. According to researchers, the artificial skin put on the robotic hand will eventually be able to feel everything held in the hand, even though this model will serve as medical assistance for physicians and nurses.
Srikant, an associate professor at the School of Computing and Electrical Engineering at IIT Mandi, described this model as follows: “The artificial skin created by his team is completely capable of recognizing and feeling these things, but the robotic hand is not able to read the human brain, which is why the things held by the artificial hand are not felt.” This skin was created using hydrogel and PDMS substrate. To hold a potato and a tomato, different pressure and power are needed. A robotic hand can sense the amount of pressure and strength required to hold anything by using artificial skin. It can also determine how hot or cold something is in addition to this.
“A 12-member team has been working on this model for the past two years, and all the research has been done at IIT Mandi,” Srikant stated. As of right now, their model is still in its early stages and is ready to touch and feel objects. Gloves with artificial skin are used to instruct it on how and how hard to hold objects. At room temperature, the skin his team created can last for four to five years. Research on the model to make it air-conditioned in harsh environments is also ongoing and will be finished in a year.
Meanwhile, Srikant stated that the second specialty of this concept is that it would also show to be successful in hospitals. It will be easier for physicians and nurses to work while on duty because this model will act as their assistant.
