At the same rate that all the capabilities of current robots are developing, something that is happening at an incredibly fast pace, there are other aspects that are also developing, such as their presence, something that must also be improved so that humans we finally end up accepting them. An answer to this question may come from a group of researchers from the MIT thanks to its concept of printed skin.
As they themselves have commented in the published paper where they tell us about their project, apparently they have decided be inspired by the golden tortoise beetle, an insect that has the peculiarity of being able to shed its skin and create a different color when it is necessary to camouflage itself. On the other hand, they have achieved that this synthetic skin, which must be full of sensors to perform the robot's functions, can be manufactured using 3D printing.
MIT shows us its new concept of robot skin made by 3D printing.
One of the main objectives of this new technology is to transfer the tactile concept that exists today on any smartphone screen to the skin of this new generation of robots, which, in turn, will allow we can interact with them by touching them anywhere on their body.
As a detail, tell you that this new skin for robots printed using 3D technologies is a reality thanks to the use of a printer multifabA fairly small model in terms of dimensions but which, after a series of modifications, has made it possible to test this attractive advance where a liquid that acts as a semiconductor that must go through an introduction and hardening process has to be used. The main problem they have had has been to test half a dozen materials such as copper, ceramics and even plastics of different formats with which to be able to replicate the natural function of this insect in a single, solid 3D printed circuit board.