fig1 illustrates a robot 100 designed to operate in remote environments , including other planets such as mars . the robot 100 may be operated from a base station on earth . this allows the collection of data in a remote and hostile environment such as mars without exposing people to the dangers involved with space travel . data collected by the robot allows for a better understanding of the hazards related to the human exploration of these remote environments . one hazard that may exist is the electrostatic nature of a remote environment . when a person explores a planet surface such as mars , there is the possibility that the interaction between the person and the planet surface may cause a build - up of static electricity , which may be harmful to people and equipment . to reduce the build - up of static electricity , the nature of the environment may be tested . based on the results of these tests , materials that may come in contact with the environment may be selected to reduce the build - up of static electricity . the robot 100 includes a body 102 having legs 120 to provide stability . a moveable arm 105 extends from the robot 100 to provide for data collection . an electrometer 115 is attached to the heel of the arm 105 . a camera 110 may also be attached to the arm 105 to provide a visual guide for the electrometer 115 . the electrometer 115 may be dragged along the surface of the remote environment to collect data . fig2 illustrates the heel 200 of the robotic arm 105 of fig1 . the heel 200 houses the electrometer 115 according to an embodiment of the present invention . the electrometer 115 includes a variety of sensors to collect data . a temperature sensor ( not shown ) is housed within the electrometer 115 . external sensors include a ion current sensor 205 , an electric field sensor 210 , and a plurality of triboelectric sensors 215 , 220 , 225 , 230 , and 235 . the triboelectric sensors 215 , 220 , 225 , 230 , and 235 collectively form a sensor array . although five sensors are shown and described , any plurality of sensors may be used without departing from the spirit of the invention . each of the triboelectric sensors 215 , 220 , 225 , 230 , and 235 consists of a different insulating material . triboelectrification occurs when two different materials come in contact with each other . when two materials are rubbed together , one of the material becomes positively charged and the other takes on a negative charge . a triboelectic series may be used to predict the behavior of the materials . a sample triboelectric series is included as table 1 . of course , the materials listed in table 1 are just a sample of the thousands of materials available . each triboelectric sensor 215 , 220 , 225 , 230 , and 235 includes one of the materials . materials may be selected along the triboelectic series to provide data that may be extrapolated to all materials . in the case of space exploration , materials practical for use in devices such as gloves , visors , boots , and habitat materials may be selected . fig3 is a schematic diagram of a circuit model for one sensor of a triboelectonic electrometer 300 according to an embodiment of the present invention . the triboelectonic electrometer 300 includes capacitors 305 , 310 , and 315 , a resistor 320 , and a switch 325 . a first terminal of the capacitor 315 is connected to a first terminal of the resistor 320 and a first terminal of the capacitor 310 . a second terminal of the capacitor 315 and a second terminal of the resistor 320 are connected to ground . the second terminal of the capacitor 310 is connected to the first terminal of the capacitor 305 , to a first terminal of a switch 325 , and to an operational amplifier . a second terminal of the capacitor 305 and a second terminal of the switch 325 are connected to ground . the triboelectonic electrometer 300 is similar to the design of a traditional electrometer . in the triboelectonic electrometer 300 , the switch 325 is typically a low - leakage solid state switch and is used to remove voltage from the capacitor 305 . the capacitor 310 may be replaced by an insulator that is adapted to be rubbed against the test material to determine the potential build - up of charge . the resistor 320 functions as a discharge mechanism for the capacitor 310 . fig4 is a block diagram of the operation of one sensor of the electrometer according to an embodiment of the present invention . at position 400 , the sensor is in contact with the test soil 405 just prior to being rubbed against the test soil 405 . the switch 325 has discharged the capacitor 305 and the insulator 410 includes a charge based on the material selected for the insulator . the sensor is then rubbed against the test soil 405 and the insulator 410 and the test soil 405 experience triboelectrification . the insulator 410 then changes polarity depending on the material of the insulator 410 . at position 405 , the sensor has just been lifted from the test soil 405 and the polarity of the insulator 410 has been changed due to triboelectrification . the change in polarity of the insulator 410 causes a charge in the capacitor 305 . the charge in the capacitor 305 is measured over time to determine the triboelectric properties of the test soil 405 . of course , the electrometer 115 is simultaneously using a plurality of sensors . in an experimental test , the electrometer 115 was constructed using insulators of abs , polycarbonate , linen filled phenolic , rulon - j , and teflon . the sensor array was then rubbed against wool felt at room temperature to obtain a triboelectric response . fig5 illustrates experimental response curves 500 from the array of sensors in the electrometer according to the experimental setup . the curve 505 shows the response of the sensor having abs as an insulator . the curve 510 shows the response of the sensor having polycarbonate as an insulator . the curve 515 shows the response of sensor having linen filled phenolic as an insulator . the curve 520 shows the response of the sensor having rulon - j as an insulator . the curve 525 shows the response of the sensor having teflon as an insulator . the response at approximately 0 . 2 seconds is during the rubbing process . after secession of rubbing , the curves show a small loss of charge which indicates that these insulators have good insulating properties . in addition , the response show both positive , zero , and negative behavior . the zero behavior may be used to identify an important anti - static material . the voltage at the output of the amplifier had a gain of four with respect to the input . by using the sensor array , a variety of insulating materials may be simultaneously tested to determine the triboelectric response of each material . by using the sensor array , a detailed picture of the static response of the test material may be obtained . this allows for the selection of materials to reduce the static electricity . numerous variations and modifications of the invention will become readily apparent to those skilled in the art . accordingly , the invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from its spirit or essential characteristics .