AISkin, or artificial ionic skin, is an innovation out of Canada's University of Toronto Engineering that is made using two oppositely charged sheets of stretchable hydrogels. The ultra-stretchy, transparent and self-powering sensor is used to record skin sensations, especially in response to changes in humidity, temperature or even strain. According to Professor Xinyu Liu, "If you look at human skin, how we sense heat or pressure, our neural cells transmit information through ions—it’s really not so different from our artificial skin."
There are tons of potential applications for the skin-like sensor, as it could be used in everything from wearable technology and personal healthcare products to robotics.
Image Credit: University of Toronto Engineering
Key Themes Behind This Trend
- Stretchy Skin-like Sensors
- Opportunities for self-powering, wearable skin sensors in industries like healthcare, robotics and wearable technology
- Ultra-stretchy Hydrogels
- Disruptive innovation software and materials used to create new sensors that record skin sensations
- Artificial Ionic Skin
- Emerging trend of creating sensors that mimic human skin and react to external stimuli using ions
Where This Applies
- Healthcare
- Artificial ionic skin has potential to revolutionize patient monitoring and treatment
- Robotics
- Stretchy skin-like sensors can be used in robots to replicate human touch and improve their operational efficiency
- Wearable Technology
- AISkin can be incorporated into wearable technology products to collect data on user's skin sensations and external environment
