A Magnetorheological Elastomer Device for Programmable Actuation and Sensing of Soft Haptic Experiences

摘要: Soft and conformable haptics devices have the potential to dynamically change one’s percept of object compliance. With this problem in mind, this work presents the design and initial evaluation of a soft actuator and sensor, built of magnetorheological elastomers (MREs) with a programmable stiffness of 33 – 57 kPa at magnetic fields of 0-5 mT. In addition to its programmable stiffness, the material’s flexibility affords the generation of vibratory feedback. Furthermore, the device can be used as a capacitive sensor to detect a contact and to measure forces between 0.1 – 4.9 N.