Flexible latching-type tactile display system actuated by combination of electromagnetic and pneumatic forces

In this paper, we have proposed and fabricated a new flexible latching-type tactile display system, which is actuated by combination of electromagnetic and pneumatic forces for large displacement and high tactile force. The proposed tactile display system is implemented on a flexible PDMS structure and can be easily attached on any curved body to transfer reliable tactile information to human. From the proto-type, the actuation displacement has been measured to be 700 μm and the generated force to be 100 mN. With an air pressure 19.5 kPa, the status of tactile actuator can be controlled with an applied current of 10 mA. Also, we have successfully implemented 2 × 2 tactile display array controlled with an applied current and it can be used to transfer different combination of tactile information to human.