The SelfHealing Whisker

1
The Self-Healing Whisker
To create a smart whisker system to
detect, remove and replace a damaged whisker.

• Mike Taylor
• Blythe Towal
• (at Neuroscience conference)

2
Mechanical Layout

• Initial Design
• Capstan drive
• Wire spool below
• Wire through follicle
• Two strain gauges per plane
• Future Design
• Wire guide for off-site supply
• Smaller folicle

3
Electrical and Software

• Servo To Go Board
• Wheatstone Bridge
• Measure Vout
• Use potentiometer to zero Vout under no load
• Inst-Amp 1000 Gain
• RC filters
• Low and high pass
• FFT to find frequency

5 V
Vout
5 V
Strain Gauge Potentiometer
4
Strain Gauge Sensors

• Resistance proportional to strain
• Gauge super-glued to follicle
• Easy to apply
• Temporary app.
• 0.02 inch wire detectable
• O-Scope shows vibrations very well
• Amp
• Freq
• Envelope

5
Follicular Design

• PVC allows high strain vs. force
• Two strain gauges per plane
• Remove thermal creep
• Resolve bending vs compression/tension
• Drill size limits length of follicle
• Natural damping of plastic a concern

6
Results

• Follicle concept proved
• All features visible to naked eye on O-Scope
• Servo To Go Board able to detect vibrations
• Simple frequency finding code is functional
• Questions
• Can we detect vibrations originating from base?
• Will plastic take on a permanent strain?
• Can we use amplitude of vibration to detect bent
  whiskers?