The same qualities that make a knitted sweater comfortable and easy to wear will allow robots to better interact with humans.
The RobotSweater, developed by a research team from Carnegie Mellon University’s Robotics Institute, is a machine-knitted textile “skin” that can sense contact and pressure. Just as knitters can take any kind of yarn and turn it into a sock, hat or sweater of any size or shape, the knitted RobotSweater fabric can be customized to fit uneven three-dimensional surfaces.
Once knitted, the fabric can be used to help the robot “feel” when a human touches it, particularly in industrial settings where safety is paramount.
