Superman-like Artificial Skin Could Give The Burnt Victims A Chance To Feel

Recently, the researchers from the University of Connecticut have developed a unique sensor that could coax the artificial skin to help the burnt victims have a skin of their own to feel or safeguard their body against infections. The skin tends to have the ability to feel cold, heat, pressure, and vibration is a function the people take for granted. In the case of burnt victims, the prosthetics or skin sensitivity lost victims the most of the sense-related functions are lost.

Islam Mosa and James Rusling from UConn and UConn Health in collaboration with Engineer Abdelsalam Ahmed from the University of Toronto have worked on creating a sensor that can replicate skins sensing properties. The novel sensor helps perceive vibration, temperature, and pressure. Some of the additional features like magnetic field, abnormal behaviors, and sound waves detection could give the newly formed skin a superhero perspective. The researchers created a new sensor using silicone tube covered with copper wire and crammed with a particular fluid formed of measly iron oxide nanoparticles. The nanoparticles tend to move around in the silicone tube and generate an electric current. The current is then picked up by the copper wire in the form of a signal. The tubes when under pressure cause the nanoparticles to move which in turn changes the electrical signals plus generates sound waves in the nanoparticle fluid.

The magnetic field changes the signals and in a way different from sound waves and pressure.  The electrical signals vary in a running walking, jumping, and swimming individual as the sensors change the current. The new metal may make one feel like a member of the X-men. But the researchers only hope to help the burn victims feel again as well as help people exposed to extremely strong magnetic fields. The rubber outer cover is water repellant and totally sealed. It could help alert on the basis of threat. The sensor is yet to be tested against heat and cold which seems positive. The foremost step is to create a flat configuration just like the skin. Professor Zhenan Bao from Stanford had earlier developed a flexible skin-like material-based having multiple sensors to develop detect pressure and transfer the information to the nervous systems component.