Electrically-driven phase transition actuators to power soft robot designs

Abstract

In the quest for electrically-driven soft actuators, the focus has shifted away from liquid-gas phase transition, commonly associated with reduced strain rates and actuation delays, in favour of electrostatic and other electrothermal actuation methods. This prevented the technology from capitalizing on its unique characteristics, particularly: low voltage operation, controllability, scalability, and ease of integration into robots. Here, we introduce a liquid-gas phase transition electric soft actuator that uses water as the working fluid and is powered by a coil-type flexible heating element. It achieves strain rates of over 16%/s and pressurization rates of 100 kPa/s. Blocked forces exceeding 50 N were achieved while operating at voltages up to 24 V. We propose a method for selecting working fluids which allows for application-specific optimization, together with a nonlinear control approach that reduces both parasitic vibrations and control lag. We demonstrate the integration of this technology in soft robotic systems, including a cable-driven biomimetic hand and a quadruped robot powered by liquid-gas phase transition. Liquid–gas phase transition actuators in soft robotics face low strain rates and delays, which limit the performance. Here, the authors explore performance enhancements via actuator design, fluid selection, and vibration reduction solutions.