The researcher’s team at RMIT University has developed an electronic artificial skin that mimics the human body’s near-instant feedback response and can also react to the sensations at the same speed that nerve signals travel to the brain.

The researchers say that the device is capable of mimicking the body’s quick response to things, and can react to painful sensations with the same lighting speed that nerve signals travel to the brain.

According to Madhu Bhaskaran, an engineering professor at RMIT University and the project’s lead researcher, made of silicone rubber, it has the texture of real skin and is also “very similar to skin in its mechanical properties.

Professor Bhaskaran also said, “Skin is our body’s largest sensory organ, with complex features designed to send rapid-fire warning signals when anything hurts. We’re sensing things all the time through the skin, but our pain response only kicks in at a certain point, like when we touch something too hot or too sharp.”

“No electronic technologies have been able to realistically mimic that very human feeling of pain—until now. It’s a critical step forward in the future development of the sophisticated feedback systems that we need to deliver truly smart prosthetics and intelligent robotics.”

As predicted by scientists, the device could pave the way towards better prosthetics, smarter robotics, and non-invasive alternatives to skin grafts. In other words, it is significant to advance towards next-generation biomedical technologies and intelligent robotics.