Abstract:
Artificial muscles are an exciting new technology which could revolutionise the way machines are controlled today. These are low-cost, soft and rubbery devices which undergo large strains when an electric field is applied. This interaction has spawned many different types of applications such as soft actuators, sensors and motors. However what is lacking are the accompanying soft logic and control mechanisms, which are vital to create an all-encompassing soft robotic device. The Dielectric Elastomer Switch which is a resistor that changes resistance sigmoidally as it is deformed to represent Boolean ON/OFF states helps to bridge this large disparity between actuators and control. But they are currently plagued with problems of repeatability namely due to manual fabrication. These problems are the crux of this project so the aims are tailored to finding new manufacturing processes to improve their performance on existing switches and also testing new switching materials supplied by the Army Research Lab. Consequently, a new modular artificial muscle ring oscillator and a virtual companion model which incorporated these materials were designed as benchmarking platforms to further understand and characterise them. A new stamping method was produced in order to minimise the variability between each switch which they were then individually tested to observe their behaviour under different conditions. After learning about some of their characteristics, they were configured together as a ring oscillator which performed successfully to extract more information about these materials. However there were discrepancies between the simulated results of the virtual model and the results of the actual oscillator due to some limitations in the model. The implications of the ring oscillator system and the virtual model are profound; as it creates the foundation and opportunity to further propel the research and development of newer and better switches. With improved switches, more advanced logic can be developed which have the potential to one day be fully integrated into a truly soft robotic device with embedded control, devoid of today’s hard, bulky electronics. Much like real muscles in the body, artificial muscles can provide a much more natural and comfortable human interaction.