Abstract
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Smart actuators have a considerable potential
to articulate novel mechanisms and mechatronic devices
inspired from biological systems. Electroactive polymer
actuators (EAPs), as a class of smart and soft actuators,
are ideal candidates for bioinspired mechatronic applications
due to their compliance and built-in actuation
ability originating from the material they are made of. In
this paper, we report on a soft mechatronic mechanism,
like a positioning stage, fabricated from bending-type
EAP actuators as a one-piece fully compliant mechanism
inspired from twining structures in nature. We have employed
a quasi-static finite-element model combined with
a soft robotic kinematic model to estimate the mechanical
output of the soft mechatronic mechanism as a function
of a single electrical input. Experiments were conducted
under a range of electrical step inputs (0.25–1 V) and
sine-wave inputs with various frequencies to validate the
models. Experimental and simulation results show that
this electrically stimulated soft mechatronic mechanism
generates a linear displacement as large as 1.8 mm under
1 V out of its fabrication plane like a lamina emergent mechanism,
while its bioinspired spiral parts bend and twine.
This fully compliant and compact mechanism can find a
place in optics as a microstage and/or an optical zoom
mechanism.