Human-machine future seen in blink of an eye

glasses’ frame, the minuscule muscle movement of a closing eye momentarily pushes the sensor’s layers together, generating an electrical signal that can be reliably measured,” the study said. It was published last week in the US journal Science Advances.

“It is supersensitive, stable, easy and cheap,” said Pu Xianjie, the lead author of the report. “We are now applying for a patent in China and overseas. In the near future, we expect to see it on the market.”

The sensor can initiate tasks such as turning a light on or off. When the glasses are connected to a computer screen, the wearer can blink as a cursor passes over different keys, typing out words.

“This TENG-based micromotion sensor is distinct and unique in its fundamental mechanism, which provides a novel design concept for intelligent sensor techniques and shows great potential for application in HMIs,” Hu said.

“For our next step, we would like to ... explore the great potential of TENG sensors in intelligent robots.”

DONG XUMING / FOR CHINA DAILY Crop pictures are clearly visible in rice fields in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, on Thursday. The images were not made by aliens, however. Zhang Bin, a professor at Zhejiang University, developed a way to make them using special planting techniques....