Integrated Smart Glove System via Hardware-Software Co-Design: 3D Printed MXene/CNT/Ecoflex Sensors for Real-Time Gesture Recognition

Flexible strain sensors capable of detecting subtle human movements are pivotal for advancements in human-machine interaction and virtual reality technologies. However, achieving high sensitivity, a broad sensing range, and system-level integration simultaneously remains a formidable challenge due to the inherent trade-off between electrical conductivity and mechanical deformability. Herein, a high-performance 3D-printed flexible strain sensor based on a synergistic MXene/carbon nanotube (CNT)/Ecoflex nanocomposite is reported. By coupling a microscopic MXene/CNT bridging network to mitigate irreversible nanosheet restacking with a macroscopic 3D-printed stress-dissipating architecture, the inherent conflict between electrical conductivity and mechanical deformability is successfully reconciled. This synergistic design endows the sensor with high linearity ( R 2 = 0.99), a broad sensing range (up to 80%), and exceptional durability (>1000 cycles). This proof-of-concept system integrates STM32-based acquisition with dynamic visualization. Results confirm its stable low-latency performance in motion mapping, validating the hardware-software co-design approach for future integrated wearable electronics.