Development of the distributive method towards sensing tactile information in healthcare

Peter N. Brett, Xianghong Ma

Research output: Chapter in Book/Published conference outputConference publication

Abstract

In this paper the potential of the distributive approach is discussed through the outcome of a series of experimental In this paper the distributive approach to sensing applied to tactile sensing is described with reference to experimental evidence on performance and projected applications. The method discriminates parameters describing contact conditions or for recognising a contacting object, its behaviour or to evaluate various metrics and measurands. The performance is dependent on the response of the contacting surface and data interpretation functions. The surface is used to non-linearly couple the outputs of a small number of sensing elements. When the placement of sensing elements are optimised for the application, typically only 4 or 5 are required to be used to ensure a robust performance. Additional sensors merely build in redundancy to the system. This leads to devices outputting information that are mechanically efficient and robust. With these attributes, together with the ability toautomatically classify contacting objects, behaviour and transient disturbances the method has potential for wideranging applications in healthcare. The approach is discussed with reference to examples including the motion of human subjects. Different techniques to derive describing parameters have to be applied to suit the different types of static or dynamic responses of surfaces in different applications. This approach to tactile sensing, with the capability to derive information rather than data, has an extensive future, however the understanding of optimal design with respect to applications and the metrics to be retrieved in near real-time, is at an early stage.

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationProceedings of the 2008 International Conference on Semantic Web and Web Services, SWWS 2008
Pages283-287
Number of pages5
Publication statusPublished - 1 Dec 2008
Event2008 International Conference on Semantic Web and Web Services, SWWS 2008 - Las Vegas, NV, United Kingdom
Duration: 14 Jul 200817 Jul 2008

Conference

Conference2008 International Conference on Semantic Web and Web Services, SWWS 2008
Country/TerritoryUnited Kingdom
CityLas Vegas, NV
Period14/07/0817/07/08

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