Unbreakable bionic glove made from silk for human-machine-interfacing

Nanowerk  December 14, 2021
An international team of researchers (Denmark, Finland) has designed a new electronic material called CareGum by mixing silk fibroin and reduced graphene oxide. They used a phenolic glue to facilitate sacrificial and hierarchical hydrogen bonds. The hierarchal bonding scheme gives rise to high mechanical toughness, record-breaking elongation capacity of ≈25 000%, excellent conformability to arbitrary and complex surfaces, 3D printability, a tenfold increase in electrical conductivity, and a fourfold increase in Young’s modulus compared to its pristine counterpart. Since its conductivity is based on ions, CareGum can convey information over longer distances than rigid electronics based on electron transport – exactly like the human body. By taking advantage of these unique properties, they developed a durable and self-healing bionic glove for hand gesture sensing and sign translation. The work could enable those who cannot speak to speak again and allow digital rehabilitation programs to ensure quick recovery of injured body parts…read more. TECHNICAL ARTICLE