Development of Vacuum Driven Actuator by Pouch Processing of 3D Printed Bending Structure

Abstract

There are many polymeric materials that could be introduced as soft actuators, however the choices are actually limited due to strong degradation constraints. Among them, hydrogels have the weakness of drying, although their softness can be controlled by water content. Therefore, this study proposes a novel printable/vacuumable gel actuator by combining 3D printing and pouch processing. By pouching a polymer gel together with a structure that bends and deforms under external pressure, we show that the actuator combines the softness of the gel with deformation versatility.