STTR Phase I: Powerless, Flexible Sensor Subfloor Mats from Natural Materials

The broader impact/commercial potential of this Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) Phase I project involves a low-cost, convenient, anonymous floor occupancy analysis. This will be achieved by developing a powerless, flexible subfloor sensor mat that can integrate with regular flooring products. If implemented in buildings, the sensor mat will help raise space utilization, improve occupant productivity and satisfaction, and inform dynamic layout planning for organizational agility. This sensor mat will address the needs from different parties in the small building ecosystem, including flooring manufacturers, building system integrators, work space system providers, architects and interior designers, and cooperations and businesses in commercial buildings. Additionally, this thin film with high electrical output, if successfully achieved in this project, will find great commercialization potential in other applications, such as self-powered, wireless adhesive wearable electronics, and implantable medical devices. This proposal also has an environmental impact in that it reduces carbon footprint, promotes use of green natural materials and generation of renewable energy. The proposed project has the intellectual merits of addressing two key questions that could determine the technical and commercial feasibility of the occupancy sensor mat. First, how to create a sufficiently thin and flexible sensor mat that has no impact on flooring installment and walking performance. Second, how to raise the electrical output and energy generated from the sensor mat to the level that is high enough to meet the requirements of signal resolution and wireless transmission? Specific research tasks and methods include: natural cellulosic materials chemical functionalization for electric property engineering towards high power output; sensor mat design to effectively convert footsteps to electricity within a confined mat thickness; integration of wireless transmission units tailored for the sensor mat towards a self-powered sensor with wireless connectivity. The final goal is to develop a powerless sensor from which the electrical output and the energy generation will be sufficient to sustain itself and to provide discernible data. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.