The team says the device is able to detect a pulse, a blink of an eye and other human movement and is light, flexible and inexpensive, with the potential for application in health care, entertainment and robotics.
The scientists use normal tissue paper, which they douse with carbon nanotube-laced water. The tissue paper is loaded with nanocomposites and when torn, the horizontal and vertical fibres break, resulting in a sensor. The direction of the tear is said to inform the sensor of what's happened.
It can detect a heartbeat, finger force, finger movement, eyeball movement and more, said Jae-Hyun Chung, a UW associate professor of mechanical engineering and senior author of the research.
"The major innovation is a disposable wearable sensor made with cheap tissue paper," says Chung. "When we break the specimen, it will work as a sensor."
Chung’s team believes the sensors could be used in a variety of fields, such as inspecting brain function or a gamer’s actions, or in occupational therapy for seniors, or even to track how, for example, a child with special needs walks in a home test, minimising hospital visits.
"They can use these sensors and after one-time use, they can be thrown away," adds Chung.
The work has been contained to a laboratory for now, but the researchers are hoping to find a suitable commercial use.
