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Touch has profound effects on our well-being. It has been shown to reduce stress, enhance the immune system, and alleviate pain. In fact, touch is so vital that the absence of it can have dire consequences, babies deprived of touch may even face mortality.
Smart textiles are making virtual reality more immersive and enabling wearers to experience the sensation of physical touch. An ultrathin film that can transmit touch sensations is able to turn textiles into a virtual second skin. (Photo : Oliver Dietze)
Bridging the Touch Gap
A breakthrough in healthcare technology is offering a lifeline to isolated sick children and their parents. Developed researchers at Saarland University, this innovative solution utilizes a smart textile made of silicon, as thin as a film, to simulate physical touch remotely.
For children undergoing isolation in hospitals, the absence of physical contact can be profoundly distressing. However, this groundbreaking technology aims to bridge that gap enabling parents to ‘touch’ their children virtually.
Moreover, this intelligent textile, compact enough to fit on the back of a watch, has significant implications for healthcare. Touch has long been recognized for its therapeutic benefits, triggering the release of hormones like oxytocin, serotonin, and dopamine.
The advancement of smart textiles presents promising opportunities to revolutionize healthcare, offering new avenues for patient care and well-being.
Revolutionizing Healthcare with Smart Textile Technology
The absence of touch during childhood can impede growth and development in numerous ways. Recognizing the therapeutic potential of touch, researchers have pioneered the development of a smart textile with profound therapeutic and medicinal benefits.
According to the researchers, this innovative technology offers a lifeline to seriously ill children confined to hospital isolation wards, providing them with the opportunity to experience the comforting presence of their parents, albeit remotely.
The groundbreaking smart textile, with a thickness of merely 50 micrometers, operates akin to a second skin, equating to approximately 0.0019685 inches or 0.05 millimeters. Crafted from silicon, this ultrathin smart textile showcases the remarkable potential of sensitivity and flexibility.
Professor Paul Motzki of Saarland University elucidated that the textile incorporates a highly flexible electrically conducting layer printed onto each side of the ultrathin film, forming what is referred to as a dielectric elastomer.
Motzki further explained that when a voltage is applied to the elastomer film, the electrodes are drawn together, resulting in the compression of the polymer and subsequent expansion sideways, thereamplifying its surface area.
Moreover, the film is capable of capturing the imprint of a parent’s touch. Upon contact, this touch alters the electrical capacitance of the film, a measurable physical quantity.
Subsequently, the film transmits this sequence to a child wearing the second skin, facilitating the reception of the touch. Functioning as both a sensor and an actuator, the film detects and transmits the touch signal effectively.
Scientists can finely regulate and manage the intensity of touch sensations. At the Hannover Messe conference, they’ll demonstrate this using a watch, translating finger touch into stroking motions. This innovation could enhance medical care for isolated children, signaling advancements in healthcare.
