A Bilayer Hydrogel Sensor for Elderly Oriented Human–Machine Interaction

As the population ages, the need for accessible and effortless human–machine interaction (HMI) systems tailored to elderly users has grown rapidly. However, the existing gesture sensors, mainly designed for normal motion monitoring, rarely address the challenges of reduced motion amplitude and slower reaction times in elderly individuals. Here, we introduce a bilayer hydrogel strain sensor comprising conductive tempo-oxidized cellulose nanofibers (TOCNF), poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA), and MXene nanosheets hydrogel with a neutral-wettability thermoplastic polyether ester elastomer (TPEE) coating. Notably, the sensor demonstrates good strain sensitivity with a gauge factor exceeding 7.54 at 5% strain, ensuring reliable performance in detecting subtle gestures of the elderly. Furthermore, the sensor can be applied to the arm for monitoring muscle activity, which provides an alternative approach for the detection of subtle movements and gesture classification. Machine learning based arm-mounted muscle activity monitoring achieves 100% accuracy in gesture recognition, underscoring the suitability for elderly oriented HMI applications. Overall, this platform demonstrates potential for robust, user-friendly gesture recognition for elderly users with subtle gestures.