Artificial Skin Gives Robots Sense of Touch and Beyond

We tend to take our sense of touch for granted in everyday settings, but it is vital for our ability to interact with our surroundings. Imagine reaching into the fridge to grab an egg for breakfast. As your fingers touch its shell, you can tell the egg is cold, that its shell is smooth, and how firmly you need to grip it to avoid crushing it. These are abilities that robots, even those directly controlled by humans, can struggle with. A new artificial skin developed at Caltech can now give robots the ability to sense temperature, pressure, and even toxic chemicals through a simple touch.