Bistable dielectric elastomer minimum energy structures

Abstract

Dielectric elastomer minimum energy structures (DEMES) can realize large angular deformations by small voltage-induced strains, which make them an attractive candidate for use as soft actuators. If the task only needs binary action, the bistable structure will be an efficient solution and can save energy because it requires only a very short duration of voltage to switch its state. To obtain bistable DEMES, a method to realize the two stable states of traditional DEMES is provided in this paper. Based on this, a type of symmetrical bistable DEMES is proposed, and the required actuation pulse duration is shorter than 0.1 s. When a suitable mass is attached to end of the DEMES, or two layers of dielectric elastomer are affixed to both sides of the primary frame, the DEMES can realize two stable states and can be switched by a suitable pulse duration. To calculate the required minimum pulse duration, a mathematical model is provided and validated by experiment.