Development of a Soft Linear Motion Actuator using Synthetic Rubber

摘要

As ElectroActive Polymers (EAPs) attract keen attentions from various engineering fields, they have been proven more beneficial over the traditional electromagnetic transducers. In the present paper, a new polymeric material that could be adopted for a dielectric elastomer actuator is introduced. The proposed synthetic rubber produces larger deformation at higher energy efficiency compared to previously known dielectric elastomers. A method for the material synthesis and a set of comparative testing of the material to the existing material are to be mentioned in the present work. In addition, benefits of actuators made with the proposed material are discussed.