Modelling and simulation methods applied to the design of AMR sensor arrays capable of tracking the 2D motion of sub-mm magnets for tactile sensing applications

Abstract Compared with conventional Hall-effect sensors, magnetoresistive (MR) sensors feature enhanced signal-to-noise ratio, higher sensitivity and better thermal stability. Anisotropic MR (AMR) sensors are especially attractive due to their simple and cheap fabrication process allowing them to attain high sensitivity at low cost in a relatively compact footprint. Here, we present modelling and simulation methods implemented for the design of AMR sensor arrays suitable for reconstructing the motion of a sub-mm-sized permanent magnet in 2D. The theoretical arguments and design approaches discussed in this work can be readily extended to evaluating the tracking performance of AMR sensor arrays devised to reconstruct the magnet motion in 3D, which would lay the foundation for realizing novel miniaturized 3D tactile sensors suitable to detect both normal and shear force components.