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Micromachined piezoresistive tactile sensor array fabricated by bulk-etched MUMPs process
Author(s)
Lomas, Tanom
Tuantranont, Adisorn
Cheevasuvit, Fusak
Date Issued
July 14, 2003
Type
Conference Paper
Abstract
This paper discusses the design, fabrication and testing of a 5×5 micromachined tactile sensor array for the detection of an extremely small force (micrometer-Newton range). Central contacting pads that are trampoline-shape suspended structures and sensor beams are formed using an anisotropic etching of silicon substrate of a MUMPs process chip. A piezoresistive layer of polysilicon embedded in sensor beams is used to detect the displacement of the suspended contacting pad. Each square tactile has dimension of 200 μm × 200 μm with 250 μm center-to-center spacing. The entire sensor area is 1.25 mm × 1.25 mm. The device was characterized under various normal force loads using weight microneedles. The individual sensor element shows the linear response to normal force with good repeatability.
Citation
Proceedings IEEE International Symposium on Circuits and Systems, 4, IV856-IV859, 2003