Flexible arch-shaped triboelectric sensor based on 3D printing for badminton movement monitoring and intelligent recognition of technical movements

Efficient monitoring and recognition of movement are crucial in enhancing athletic performance. Traditional methods have limitations in terms of high site requirements and power consumption, making them unsuitable for long-term tracking and monitoring. A potential solution to low-power monitoring of body area networks is triboelectric sensors. However, the current analysis method for badminton triboelectric sensing data is relatively simple, while flexible, triboelectric sensors based on 3D printing face issues such as discomfort when joints are bent or twisted in a large range. In light of this, a flexible arch-shaped triboelectric sensor based on 3D printing (FA-Sensor) is proposed. By combining neural network algorithms with the signal acquisition module and the master computer, an intelligent multi-sensor node system for badminton monitoring is established. The FA-Sensor exhibits high sensitivity to bending and twisting motions due to its elastic TPE shell and arched shape design. It minimizes interference with human motion during bending (10°–150°) or twisting (20°–100°) over a wide range. The peak output voltage of the FA-Sensor demonstrates a clear functional relationship with the bending angle, exhibiting piecewise sensitivities of 7.98 and 29.28 mV/°, respectively. For seven different parts of the human body, it can be quickly customized to different sizes, with stable and repeatable response outputs. In application, the badminton sports monitoring system enables real-time feedback and recognition of four typical technical movements, achieving a recognition accuracy rate of 97.2%. The system enables athletes to analyze and enhance badminton technology while also exhibiting promising potential for application in other intelligent sports domains.