US 11,946,821 B2
Capacitive and tactile sensors and related sensing methods
Zhenan Bao, Stanford, CA (US); Mark R. Cutkosky, Palo Alto, CA (US); and Jooyeun Ham, Stanford, CA (US)
Assigned to The Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University, Stanford, CA (US)
Appl. No. 17/255,704
Filed by The Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University, Stanford, CA (US)
PCT Filed Jul. 10, 2019, PCT No. PCT/US2019/041201
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Dec. 23, 2020,
PCT Pub. No. WO2020/014356, PCT Pub. Date Jan. 16, 2020.
Claims priority of provisional application 62/696,221, filed on Jul. 10, 2018.
Prior Publication US 2021/0278300 A1, Sep. 9, 2021
Int. Cl. G01L 5/165 (2020.01); B25J 19/02 (2006.01); G01L 1/14 (2006.01); G08C 17/02 (2006.01)
CPC G01L 5/165 (2013.01) [B25J 19/02 (2013.01); G01L 1/146 (2013.01); G08C 17/02 (2013.01)] 22 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A sensor apparatus, comprising:
a capacitor including
a first substrate having a first electrode;
a second substrate having a second electrode; and
a dielectric layer having a section of dielectric material that encapsulates a plurality of apertures and that does not fill the plurality of apertures, the first and second electrodes being separated by the section of dielectric material and arranged with an overlapping area with respect to one another; and
sensor circuitry coupled to the capacitor and configured to detect normal and shear forces applied to the sensor apparatus based on changes in capacitance derived from changes in at least one of a distance between the first and second electrodes and the overlapping area of the first and second electrodes.