Professor Yongrae Park: Soft Robotics and Bionics Lab

Lab Representative Researcher Junhyung Kim

 

 

Q1. Could you please introduce your research lab and its research areas briefly?

Hello, our research lab is the Soft Robotics and Bionics Lab led by Professor Yongrae Park. The goal of our lab is to understand the dynamics and design of bio-systems and convert them into robotics and mechatronic systems applicable to humans. We conduct research on soft robots inspired by biology and new fabrication methods for multi-material smart structures. Accordingly, our research areas are divided into soft sensors, soft actuators, soft robots, wearable suits, and smart robot structures, and we comprehensively pursue research in these areas.

 

Q2. Please briefly introduce one of your representative research that is currently underway.

One of the recent research projects I conducted is a multi-modal modular sensor made of fabric for human-robot interaction. This sensor measures the magnitude of applied force and, at the same time, distinguishes whether the contact is by a human or an object through a conductivity-based method. Additionally, by modularizing each sensor into two lines, it is possible to arrange the required number of sensors into the desired shape. This sensor system is implemented using a band-stop filter using resistance-capacitance-inductance to process sensor data in the frequency domain. With the developed sensor system, robots can interact with surrounding humans by placing sensors on their surface, and conversely, humans can wear them as wearable suits.

 

Q3. Could you share what were the most challenging aspects of conducting this research, and how to overcome them?

I believe every research has its own challenges. For example, in the case of wearable suits, considering humans as the target makes clinical trials and similar aspects very challenging. In the case of the research I described above, since it involves sensors, there were relatively few such difficulties, but our concern was where to focus on the research and how far to improve the completeness of the research. For example, our sensor used a material called Velostat, which changes resistance when force is applied. We had to consider how far to analyze and research the properties of this material. Also, we had a concern about improving compensation algorithms for sensor data interference towards the end of the research, which could lead to better performance. However, if we focus excessively on improving the performance of the results rather than on the core of the research, we may fail to properly convey the essence of the research or waste unnecessary energy and time. Therefore, I realized that it is important to focus appropriate efforts on appropriate aspects.

 

It was very helpful to overcome such challenges by conducting joint research with another person. Constant communication and discussion allowed us to complement each other's shortcomings, evaluate from different perspectives, and successfully complete the research.

 

Q4. For undergraduate students interested in soft sensors and wearable sensors, could you please provide some advice or insights into the future direction of this field?

Soft sensors are, as the name suggests, flexible sensors made of soft materials such as soft silicone or fabric, rather than conventional load cells. Such soft sensors can be used in various ways, such as wearables, which can be worn by humans or robots. Furthermore, like the actual human skin senses, these sensors can also be used as artificial skin, so they can be applied to prosthetics or orthotics. Therefore, whereas many rigid sensors have been developed in the past, these days, many flexible sensors are being developed.

 

People who research soft sensors study various aspects depending on their tendencies and fields. For example, those who like manufacturing study the properties and manufacturing methods of sensors, and some study process aspects like deposition. Alternatively, those interested in how to apply sensors, namely in robotic systems, also exist. Lastly, since sensors need to process a large amount of data, there are researchers who use AI and machine learning to solve data processing issues. Therefore, rather than advising undergraduate students that they need to study certain subjects to be helpful in sensor research, I would like to say that they can pursue various research according to their abilities and strengths.

 

Q5. Advice for juniors who want to become researchers.

Firstly, I would like to mention that academic study and research are different. The process of taking classes and accepting new things in undergraduate school is quite different from becoming a researcher and defining new problems and finding solutions to them. Since you have to define the problem yourself, if there are no good questions, there will be no good answers. Ultimately, asking good questions is the beginning of research. I believe that if you keep this in mind and embark on the path of research, there will be good results.

 

MEch-SSENGER Song Se-in, Kim In-young