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Artificial muscle driven soft hydraulic robot: electromechanical actuation and simplified modeling

Zhang, M. and Li, G. and Yang, X. and Xiao, Y. and Yang, T. and Wong, T. W. and Li, T. (2018) Artificial muscle driven soft hydraulic robot: electromechanical actuation and simplified modeling. Smart Materials and Structures, 27 (9). ISSN 0964-1726

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Official URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1088/1361-665X/aacfe3

Abstract

Soft pneumatic actuators possess attributes of large deformation, high driving force and light weight in the application of soft robots and smart devices. However, most reported soft pneumatic actuators are with rigid hydraulic source such as motor driven pump, piston and pressurized reservoir. These rigid and heavy hydraulic sources limit the actuation and compliance of the soft robots. Inspired by the bladders and hydrostatic skeleton of natural creatures, we propose a soft hydraulic robot consisting of dielectric elastomer (DE) and hydrogel, exhibiting an excellent actuating performance. An inflated DE balloon functions as the soft hydraulic source, in which the pressure of the containing water can be tuned by voltage. Hydrogel chambers are connected to the DE balloon as the hydraulic actuator, deforming as a soft robotic gripper. A new analytical approach is proposed to describe the system's behaviors, which couples the electromechanical actuation of DE and the hydraulic deformation of hydrogel chamber. The proposed model is validated by good agreement between the numerical and experimental data. The proposed model could serve as a new tool for modeling and characterizing soft robots with hydraulic actuation. The working principles can guide the design and control of soft robots and smart structures.

Item Type:Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:dielectric elastomer, hydraulic source, hydrogel chamber, soft robot
Subjects:T Technology > TK Electrical engineering. Electronics Nuclear engineering
Divisions:Electrical Engineering
ID Code:79684
Deposited By: Fazli Masari
Deposited On:28 Jan 2019 06:38
Last Modified:28 Jan 2019 06:38

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