Human machine interface

Microscopy has been pivotal in improving the understanding of structure-function relationships at the nanoscale and is by now ubiquitous in most characterization labs. However, traditional microscopy operations are still limited largely by a human-centric click-and-go paradigm utilizing vendor-provided software, which limits the scope, utility, efficiency, effectiveness, and at times reproducibility of microscopy experiments. Here, a coupled software-hardware platform is developed that consists of a software package termed AEcroscopy (short for Automated Experiments in Microscopy), along with a field-programmable-gate-array device with LabView-built customized acquisition scripts, which overcome these limitations and provide the necessary abstractions toward full automation of microscopy platforms...

Endowing textiles with perceptual function, similar to human skin, is crucial for the development of next-generation smart wearables. To date, the creation of perceptual textiles capable of sensing potential dangers and accurately pinpointing finger touch remains elusive. In this study, we present the design and fabrication of intelligent perceptual textiles capable of electrically responding to external dangers and precisely detecting human touch, based on conductive silk fibroin-based ionic hydrogel (SIH) fibers...

OBJECTIVE: Physical stress associated with the static posture of neurosurgeons over prolonged periods can result in fatigue and musculoskeletal disorders. Objective assessment of surgical ergonomics may contribute to postural awareness and prevent further complications. This pilot study examined the feasibility of using wearable technology as a biofeedback tool to address this gap. METHODS: Ten neurosurgeons, including 5 attendings (all faculty) and 5 trainees (1 fellow, 4 residents), were recruited and equipped with two wearable sensors attached to the back of their head and their upper back...

Hydrogel-based flexible electronic devices serve as a next-generation bridge for human-machine interaction and find extensive applications in clinical therapy, military equipment, and wearable devices. However, the mechanical mismatch between hydrogels and human tissues, coupled with the failure of conformal interfaces, hinders the transmission of information between living organisms and flexible devices, which resulted in the instability and low fidelity of signals, especially in the acquisition of electromyographic (EMG) and electrocardiographic (ECG) signals...

PURPOSE: The expanding capabilities of surgical systems bring with them increasing complexity in the interfaces that humans use to control them. Robotic C-arm X-ray imaging systems, for instance, often require manipulation of independent axes via joysticks, while higher-level control options hide inside device-specific menus. The complexity of these interfaces hinder "ready-to-hand" use of high-level functions. Natural language offers a flexible, familiar interface for surgeons to express their desired outcome rather than remembering the steps necessary to achieve it, enabling direct access to task-aware, patient-specific C-arm functionality...

In recent years, soft robotic sensors have rapidly advanced to endow robots with the ability to interact with the external environment. Here, we propose a polymer optical fiber (POF) sensor with sensitive and stable detection performance for strain, bending, twisting, and pressing. Thus, we can map the real-time output light intensity of POF sensors to the spatial morphology of the elastomer. By leveraging the intrinsic correlations of neighboring sensors and machine learning algorithms, we realize the spatially resolved detection of the pressing and multi-dimensional deformation of elastomers...

The present work proposes a comprehensive metaheuristic methodology for the development of a medical robot for the upper limb rehabilitation, which includes the topological optimization of the device, kinematic models (5 DOF), human-robot interface, control and experimental tests. This methodology applies two cutting-edge triads: (1) the three points of view in engineering design (client, designer and community) and (2) the triad formed by three pillars of Industry 4.0 (autonomous machines and systems, additive manufacturing and simulation of virtual environments)...

The design and control of artificial hands remains a challenge in engineering. Popular prostheses are bio-mechanically simple with restricted manipulation capabilities, as advanced devices are pricy or abandoned due to their difficult communication with the hand. For social robots, the interpretation of human intention is key for their integration in daily life. This can be achieved with machine learning (ML) algorithms, which are barely used for grasping posture recognition. This work proposes an ML approach to recognize nine hand postures, representing 90% of the activities of daily living in real time using an sEMG human-robot interface (HRI)...

Physical activity (PA) offers many benefits for human health. However, beginners often feel discouraged when introduced to basic exercise routines. Due to lack of experience and personal guidance, they might abandon efforts or experience musculoskeletal injuries. Additionally, due to phenomena such as pandemics and limited access to supervised exercise spaces, especially for the elderly, the need to develop personalized systems has become apparent. In this work, we develop a monitored physical exercise system that offers real-time guidance and recommendations during exercise, designed to assist users in their home environment...

Imitating human neural networks via bio-inspired electronics advances human-machine interfaces (HMI), overcoming von Neumann limitations and enabling efficient, low-energy data processing in the big data era. However, single-contact mode HMIs have inherent limitations in terms of their capabilities and performances, such as constrained adaptability to dynamic environments, and reduced cognitive processing capabilities. Here, a dual-interactive-mode HMI system based on a triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG) and heterojunction synaptic transistor (HJST) is proposed for both contact and non-contact applications...

Flexible foam-based sensors have attracted substantial interest due to their high specific surface area, light weight, superior deformability, and ease of manufacture. However, it is still a challenge to integrate multimodal stimuli-responsiveness, high sensitivity, reliable stability, and good biocompatibility into a single foam sensor. To achieve this, a magnetoresistive foam sensor was fabricated by an in situ freezing-polymerization strategy based on the interpenetrating networks of sodium alginate, poly(vinyl alcohol) in conjunction with glycerol, and physical reinforcement of core-shell bidisperse magnetic particles...

Computer models of the human ventricular cardiomyocyte action potential (AP) have reached a level of detail and maturity that has led to an increasing number of applications in the pharmaceutical sector. However, interfacing the models with experimental data can become a significant computational burden. To mitigate the computational burden, the present study introduces a neural network (NN) that emulates the AP for given maximum conductances of selected ion channels, pumps, and exchangers. Its applicability in pharmacological studies was tested on synthetic and experimental data...

Flexible pressure sensors (FPSs) based on biomass materials have gained considerable attention for their potential in wearable electronics, human-machine interaction, and environmental protection. Herein, flexible silver nanowire-dual-cellulose paper (SNdCP) containing common cellulose fibers, cellulose nanofibers (CNFs), and silver nanowires (AgNWs) for FPSs was assembled by a facile papermaking strategy. Compared with bacterial cellulose (BC) and cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs), CNFs possess better dimensions and reinforcement, which enables the composite paper to exhibit better mechanical properties (tensile stress of 164...

Mimicking biological skin enabling direct, intelligent interaction between users and devices, multimodal sensing with optical/electrical (OE) output signals is urgently required. Owing to this, this work aims to logically design a stretchable OE biomimetic skin (OE skin), which can sensitively sense complex external stimuli of pressure, strain, temperature, and localization. The OE skin consists of elastic thin polymer-stabilized cholesteric liquid crystal films, an ion-conductive hydrogel layer, and an elastic protective membrane formed with thin polydimethylsiloxane...

Rapid advancements in flexible electronics technology propel soft tactile sensing devices toward high-level biointegration, even attaining tactile perception capabilities surpassing human skin. However, the inherent mechanical mismatch resulting from deficient biomimetic mechanical properties of sensing materials poses a challenge to the application of wearable tactile sensing devices in human-machine interaction. Inspired by the innate biphasic structure of human subcutaneous tissue, this study discloses a skin-compliant wearable iontronic triboelectric gel via phase separation induced by competitive hydrogen bonding...

In this study, we demonstrated the effective separation of charge carriers within the IGZO/IZO heterostructure by incorporating IZO. We have chosen IGZO for its high mobility and excellent on-off switching behavior in the front channel of our oxide-oxide heterostructure. Similarly, for an additional oxide layer, we have selected IZO due to its outstanding electrical properties. The optimized optoelectronic characteristics of the IGZO/IZO phototransistors were identified by adjusting the ratio of In:Zn in the IZO layer...

BACKGROUND: Current automated planning solutions are calibrated using trial and error or machine learning on historical datasets. Neither method allows for the intuitive exploration of differing trade-off options during calibration, which may aid in ensuring automated solutions align with clinical preference. Pareto navigation provides this functionality and offers a potential calibration alternative. The purpose of this study was to validate an automated radiotherapy planning solution with a novel multi-dimensional Pareto navigation calibration interface across two external institutions for prostate cancer...

Mixed conducting materials with both ionic and electronic conductivities have gained prominence in emerging applications. However, exploring material with on-demand ionic and electronic conductivities remains challenging, primarily due to the lack of correlating macroscopic conductivity with atom-scale structure. Here, we explore the correlation of proton-electron conductivity and atom-scale structure in graphdiyne. Precisely adjusting the conjugated diynes and oxygenic functional groups in graphdiyne yields a tunable proton-electron conductivity on the order of 103 ...

High-performance flexible temperature sensors are crucial in various technological applications, such as monitoring environmental conditions and human healthcare. The ideal characteristics of these sensors for stable temperature monitoring include scalability, mechanical flexibility, and high sensitivity. Moreover, simplicity and low power consumption will be essential for temperature sensor arrays in future integrated systems. This study introduces a solution-based approach for creating a V2 O5 nanowire network temperature sensor on a flexible film...

Flexible sensors have been developed for the perception of various stimuli. However, complex deformation, usually resulting from forces or strains from multi-axes, can be challenging to measure due to the lack of independent perception of multiaxial stimuli. Herein, flexible sensors based on the metamaterial membrane with zero Poisson's ratio (ZPR) are proposed to achieve independent detection of biaxial stimuli. By deliberately designing the geometric dimensions and arrangement parameters of elements, the Poisson's ratio of an elastomer membrane can be modulated from negative to positive, and the ZPR membrane can maintain a constant transverse dimension under longitudinal stimuli...