Flexible Plantar Empowers Humanoid Robots: Silicone Rubber and Pressure Sensors Build the "Tactile Nerves" for Locomotion
2026-08-06
As the humanoid robot industry advances at a rapid pace, achieving stable locomotion on complex ground and accurate terrain perception has become a key research priority for the sector. Bionic robot plantar feet integrated with pressure sensors and high performance silicone rubber are addressing industry pain points such as unstable robot gait and insufficient environmental perception, delivering critical component support for the practical application of humanoid robots.
The robot plantar serves as the core medium of interaction between the robot and the ground. It must withstand repeated impacts from walking and running, while collecting real time data including plantar pressure distribution, slip conditions and ground hardness. The data is fed back to the control system for gait adjustment. In many conventional solutions, pressure sensing elements are simply attached inside the plantar. Subject to long term impact and friction, they are prone to signal drift, component damage and delamination failure, and fail to meet durability requirements for real world working conditions.
To tackle these challenges, silicone rubber is adopted as the base material for robot plantars. Featuring outstanding elasticity, shock resistance, wear resistance and waterproof performance, silicone rubber cushions huge impact forces upon landing and offers physical protection for embedded force sensing resistors. Furthermore, the material can be engineered with multi hardness gradients to simulate soft human foot tissue, improving fitting performance and ground gripping capacity when the robot makes contact with surfaces, and adapting to diverse scenarios including indoor floors and rough outdoor terrain.
Array type force sensing resistors are encapsulated within the silicone rubber substrate to form an integrated flexible sensing plantar. When the robot steps down, the silicone rubber deforms, and FSR swiftly capture pressure values at multiple measuring points and output key data such as pressure center and contact area. Based on such real time data, the robot can detect slipping, mis stepping and uneven ground, and adjust stride length and center of gravity accordingly, greatly reducing fall risks and enhancing movement stability.
As a local component manufacturer, Suzhou Menhow specializes in the R&D and production of rubber and LSR products, flexible pressure sensors, printed Ecg electrode, and is expanding its footprint into the robot track. Drawing on accumulated expertise in material forming and sensor integration, the enterprise focuses on developing flexible robot components including bionic plantar units. It provides complete customized solutions ranging from structural parts to sensing modules for complete machine clients, contributing to the localization of core components for humanoid robots.