Design and Evaluation of a Low Cost 3D-Printed 6-Axis Force Sensor
Haptic devices can generate forces on a human user to enhance their interaction with the device through haptic feedback. However, more sophisticated control over this haptic feedback can be achieved when the device can also measure the forces acting between it and the user. For this presentation, a low-cost, 3D-printed 6-axis force sensor was designed to augment inexpensive haptic devices with force sensing capability. This sensor was based on the Maltese cross force sensor design with strain gauges pasted on a 3D-printed substrate. A single-axis prototype was first created to prove the feasibility of this design. Finite element analysis of the 6-axis sensor was used to optimize strain gauge placements and evaluate different sensor geometries based on sensitivity and cross-coupling error. A prototype of the final 6-axis sensor design was created and calibrated, and the properties of this sensor are presented.