Open AccessA novel strain sensor using a microchannel embedded in PDMS
Author(s) -
Angelica Campigotto,
Stephane Leahy,
Ayan Choudhury,
Guowei Zhao,
Yongjun Lai
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
journal of biomedical engineering and informatics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 2377-939X
pISSN - 2377-9381
DOI - 10.5430/jbei.v4n2p1
Subject(s) - microchannel , polydimethylsiloxane , strain gauge , gauge factor , finite element method , materials science , sensitivity (control systems) , microchannel plate detector , inlet , rotation (mathematics) , acoustics , composite material , optics , mechanical engineering , detector , nanotechnology , fabrication , structural engineering , electronic engineering , physics , engineering , geometry , mathematics , medicine , alternative medicine , pathology
A novel, inexpensive, and easy-to-use strain sensor using polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) was developed. The sensor consists of a microchannel that is partially filled with a coloured liquid and embedded in a piece of PDMS. A finite element model was developed to optimize the geometry of the microchannel to achieve higher sensitivity. The highest gauge factor that was measured experimentally was 41. The gauge factor was affected by the microchannel’s square cross-sectional area, the number of basic units in the microchannel, and the inlet and outlet configuration. As a case study, the developed strain sensors were used to measure the rotation angle of the wrist and finger joints.