WorldWide Electroactive Polymer Actuators* Webhub
*(Artifical Muscles)
This homepage provides links to various
electroactive polymer (EAP) websites worldwide and it is maintained by the JPL's NDEAA Technologies Lab. For
background information please see a
lecture on video entitled
"Electroactive
Polymers as Artificial Muscles". The field of EAP is part of the broader
field of biomimetics
Note: The graphics on this website is clickable. The graphics of the two EAP platforms
are linked to videos that require QuickTime.
View video reviewing the
field of EAP
In 1999, Dr. Bar-Cohen posed
a challenge to the worldwide research and engineering community to develop a
robotic arm that is actuated by artificial muscles to win an armwrestling
match against a human opponent. The first Armwrestling Match between EAP
actuated Robot and Human (AMERAH) was held on March 7, 2005 as part of the 2005
SPIE Annual International EAPAD
(EAP Actuators & Devices) Conference. This match was organized with
assistance from the United
States ArmSportswho provided the table for the
match. There were three
participating organizations including Environmental Robots Incorporated
(ERI), New Mexico; Swiss Federal Laboratories
for Materials Testing and Research, EMPA, Dubendorf, Switzerland;
and three senior students from the Engineering Science and Mechanics Dept.,
Virginia Tech. The human opponent is Panna
Felsen, a Straight-A
high school student from San Diego. Panna won against
all the three robotic arms where the ERI made arm managed to last 26-seconds
before losing while the other two managed to hold for 4 and 3 seconds,
respectively. Even though they did not win, this has been a very important
milestone for the field. To draw analogy from aerospace, one may want to
remember that the first flight lasted about 12 seconds.
Some of the applications that are
being considered include Haptic/Tactile
Interfaces and particularly Active
Braille Display. Another development is the first commercial product and it
is a fish robot, and it was
announced by EAMEX, Japan, at
the SPIE's EAPAD 2003 Conference.
WW-EAP INFORMATION AND ARCHIVE
- Books that cover the subject of EAP
- EAP related Conferences and Symposia
- Companies that produce EAP materials, and actuators, and/or provide processes
- Biomimetics: Biologically-Inspired Technologies
- How to make Electroactive Polymer Actuators (IPMC, etc.)
- EAP in Action video clippings
- Worldwide EAP Newsletter
PROPERTIES OF BIOLOGICAL AND ARTIFICIAL MUSCLES/EAP
- What are muscles? - "Skeletal Muscle is a Biological Example of a Linear Electro-Active Actuator," Dr. Richard L. Lieber, UCSD (SPIE paper 3669-03)
- A brief history of muscle research - Anthony N. Martonosi, "Animal electricity, Ca2+ and muscle contraction," Acta Biochimica Polonica, Vol. 47 No. 3 (2000)
- How is muscles compared with conductive polymer EAP? - MIT's comparison table
- How are EAP compared with other electroactive materials? - SRI International comparison tables/charts. These tables and charts are based on preliminary data. We would like to encourage the research community to challenge the data and help us make it as accurate as possible.
- Properties of Biological and Artificial Muscles/EAP - Measured EAP properties: the University of British Columbia's web database for viewing, comparing and submitting EAP properties.
TECHNICAL JOURNAL RELATED TO EAP AND BIOMIMETICS
- WW-EAP Newsletter, JPL
- Bioinspiration & Biomimetics Learning from Nature
- IEEE Spectrum/Robotics
- Biomaterials Network - biomat.net
- Neuroprosthesis Website
ORGANIZATIONS WORKING WITH EAP
Brazil
Canada
- Conducting Polymer Devices Group, University of British Columbia
- Smart and Adaptive Polymers Lab, University of Toronto
Estonia
Israel
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Ben-Gurion University, Beer-Sheva, Israel
- Biomimetic Materials Group, National Institute of Materials and Chemical Research, Tsukuba
- EAMEX Corporation, Ikeda Laboratory:1-8-31 Midorigaoka, Ikeda city, Osaka, k.onishi@eamex.co.jp
- Jouhou System Kougaku Laboratory, Dept. of Mechano Informatics, Faculty of Engineering, Univ. of Tokyo
- Hane Lab, Department of Mechatronics and Precision Engineering, Tohoku University, Graduate school of Engineering, Sendai, Japan
- EAP nonionic polymer gel actuators, Department of Materials Chemistry, Faculty of Textile Science and Technology, Shinshu University
- Electroactive Polymers (EAP), NDEAA Lab, Advanced Technologies Group, JPL, Pasadena, CA
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, CA
- Dept. of Orhopedics and Bioengineering, University of California, V.A. Medical Center, San Diego, CA
Japan
New Zealand
EUROPE
Hungary Spain SweedenUSA
CaliforniaBiological Muscles
EAP Material Suppliers
Technical Journal that is recommended for EAP R&D publications:
Terminology
EAP - general term describing polymers that respond to electrical stimulationElectronic EAP - polymer that change shape or dimensions due to migration of electrons in response to electric field (usually dry)
Ionic EAP - polymer that change shape or dimensions due to migration of ions in response to electric field (usually wet and contains electrolyte)
Electrostriction - the none linear reaction of ferroelectric EAP (relating strain to E2)