In a breakthrough announced on June 17, 2025, scientists have created a revolutionary electronic skin that brings robots significantly closer to human-like touch capabilities.
The research team, led by Dr. David Hardman from Cambridge's Department of Engineering and Dr. Thomas George Thuruthel from UCL Computer Science, developed a flexible, conductive skin made from a gelatine-based hydrogel that can be easily fabricated and molded into complex shapes. Their findings were published in Science Robotics.
"Having different sensors for different types of touch leads to materials that are complex to make," explained Dr. Hardman. "We wanted to develop a solution that can detect multiple types of touch at once, but in a single material."
Unlike traditional robotic skins that rely on separate sensors for different stimuli, this new technology uses a multi-modal sensing approach where the entire surface functions as one comprehensive sensor. Although not yet as sensitive as human skin, it can detect signals from over 860,000 tiny pathways, enabling it to recognize various types of touch simultaneously—from light finger taps to temperature changes and even damage from sharp objects.
The researchers used machine learning techniques to help the robotic skin "learn" which pathways matter most for sensing different types of contact efficiently. With only 32 electrodes located at a robot's wrist, the system can collect over 1.7 million pieces of information.
This advancement represents a major step toward more capable and versatile robots that can work alongside humans in complex environments. The technology has significant potential applications in healthcare, manufacturing, and home assistance, where robots need to interact safely and effectively with humans and their surroundings.
"We're not quite at the level where the robotic skin is as good as human skin, but we think it's better than anything else out there at the moment," said Dr. Thuruthel. "Our method is flexible and easier to build than traditional sensors, and we're able to calibrate it using human touch for a range of tasks."
The research was supported by Samsung Global Research Outreach Program, the Royal Society, and the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council. The team is now working to improve the durability of the electronic skin and conduct further tests in real-world robotic applications.