Comparison of Performances of Flexible Tailor-Made Force Sensing Resistors Fabricated Using Inkjet and Xurographic Techniques

Abstract

The force is one of the parameters very often measured in our life. Force sensing resistors (FSRs) can be successfully used for measuring force, especially that they can be applied in dentistry for measuring bite forces. However, it is very difficult to apply commercial FSRs for accurate measurement of bite forces and to ensure personalized approach to each patient. Because of that, design, fabrication, and characterization of tailor-made force sensing resistors intended for application in dental medicine are presented in this paper. We designed two FSRs, one with two active areas and one with four active areas (for teeth of higher volume-molars). Two different fabrication processes were applied: first additive, using inkjet printer and silver as material for conductive segments, and second subtractive, using cutter, and gold as a material for manufacturing of interdigitated structure of FSR. Performances of these FSRs have been compared, measuring resistance as a function of applied force, using in-house developed experimental set-up with an articulator.