Tactile Robotics: Past and Future

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Author: Lepora, Nathan F.
Format: Preprint
Published: 2025
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author Lepora, Nathan F.
author_facet Lepora, Nathan F.
contents What is the future of tactile robotics? To help define that future, this article provides a historical perspective on tactile sensing in robotics from the wealth of knowledge and expert opinion in nearly 150 reviews over almost half a century. This history is characterized by a succession of generations: 1965-79 (origins), 1980-94 (foundations and growth), 1995-2009 (tactile winter) and 2010-2024 (expansion and diversification). Recent expansion has led to diverse themes emerging of e-skins, tactile robotic hands, vision-based tactile sensing, soft/biomimetic touch, and the tactile Internet. In the next generation from 2025, tactile robotics could mature to widespread commercial use, with applications in human-like dexterity, understanding human intelligence, and telepresence impacting all robotics and AI. By linking past expert insights to present themes, this article highlights recurring challenges in tactile robotics, showing how the field has evolved, why progress has often stalled, and which opportunities are most likely to define its future.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2512_01106
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Tactile Robotics: Past and Future
Lepora, Nathan F.
Robotics
What is the future of tactile robotics? To help define that future, this article provides a historical perspective on tactile sensing in robotics from the wealth of knowledge and expert opinion in nearly 150 reviews over almost half a century. This history is characterized by a succession of generations: 1965-79 (origins), 1980-94 (foundations and growth), 1995-2009 (tactile winter) and 2010-2024 (expansion and diversification). Recent expansion has led to diverse themes emerging of e-skins, tactile robotic hands, vision-based tactile sensing, soft/biomimetic touch, and the tactile Internet. In the next generation from 2025, tactile robotics could mature to widespread commercial use, with applications in human-like dexterity, understanding human intelligence, and telepresence impacting all robotics and AI. By linking past expert insights to present themes, this article highlights recurring challenges in tactile robotics, showing how the field has evolved, why progress has often stalled, and which opportunities are most likely to define its future.
title Tactile Robotics: Past and Future
topic Robotics
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2512.01106