In-Sensor Computing Tactile Devices for Well-Defined Confined Space Interactions.

Abstract

Intelligent flexible tactile sensing systems offer immense potential for next-generation human-machine interaction. However, their widespread use is severely limited by data redundancy, mechanical instability, and limited on-device processing. Conventional architectures separating sensing and computing units introduce significant latency and reduce system robustness. Integrated approaches can alleviate these problems but often encounter interfacial incompatibility and low production yield. Here, we introduce a spray-heating continuous high-throughput fabrication (SH-CHTF) system. It achieves uniform, rapid production of an intelligent cut-and-paste (ICAP) tactile sensor at a rate of 680 cm²/h, over 240% faster than conventional methods. By computational fluid dynamics, the SH-CHTF system achieves precise control of multiwalled carbon nanotube conductive films, ensuring ideal electrical characteristics. The ICAP tactile sensor supports arbitrary cutting and replacement without recalibration. Moreover, it exhibits intrinsic signal filtering and logical processing functions. The performance benchmarks include small resistance variation (<0.17%) under repeated bending, fast response (<1.1 ms), and good durability exceeding 20,000 cycles. These characteristics allow conformal integration on complex surfaces and empower multichannel convolutional neural network-based gesture interactions. This work makes an advance in device-to-device manufacturing consistency, effectively overcoming the hurdles in reliable intelligent flexible electronics.