Article

Current trends in Human-Computer Interface (HCI) have brought on a wave of new
consumer devices that can track the motion of our hands. These devices have
enabled more natural interfaces with computer applications. Data gloves are
commonly used as input devices, equipped with sensors that detect the movements
of hands and communication unit that interfaces those movements with a computer.
Unfortunately, the high cost of sensor technology inevitably puts some burden to
most general users. In this research, we have proposed a low-cost data glove
concept based on printed polymeric sensor to make pressure and bending sensors
fabricated by a consumer ink-jet printer. These sensors were realized using a
conductive polymer (poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrenesulfonate)
[PEDOT:PSS]) thin film printed on glossy photo paper. Performance of these
sensors can be enhanced by addition of dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) into the aqueous
dispersion of PEDOT:PSS. The concept of surface resistance was successfully
adopted for the design and fabrication of sensors. To demonstrate the printed
sensors, we constructed a data glove using such sensors and developed software
for real time hand tracking. Wireless networks based on low-cost Zigbee
technology were used to transfer data from the glove to a computer. To our
knowledge, this is the first report on low cost data glove based on paper
pressure sensors. This low cost implementation of both sensors and communication
network as proposed in this paper should pave the way toward a widespread
implementation of data glove for real-time hand tracking applications.

Langue : ANGLAIS