Research Progress in Electroactive Polymers for Soft Robotics and Artificial Muscle Applications

Polymers, Journal Year: 2025, Volume and Issue: 17(6), P. 746 - 746

Published: March 12, 2025

Soft robots, constructed from deformable materials, offer significant advantages over rigid robots by mimicking biological tissues and providing enhanced adaptability, safety, functionality across various applications. Central to these are electroactive polymer (EAP) actuators, which allow large deformations in response external stimuli. This review examines EAP including dielectric elastomers, liquid crystal elastomers (LCEs), ionic polymers, focusing on their potential as artificial muscles. EAPs, particularly electronic varieties, noted for high actuation strain, flexibility, lightweight nature, energy efficiency, making them ideal applications mechatronics, robotics, biomedical engineering. also highlights piezoelectric polymers like polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF), known biocompatibility, ease of fabrication, contributing tactile pressure sensing robotic systems. Additionally, conducting with fast speeds strain capabilities, explored, alongside magnetic composites (MPCs) biomedicine electronics. The integration machine learning (ML) the Internet Things (IoT) is transforming soft enhancing actuation, control, design. Finally, paper discusses future directions self-healing composites, bio-inspired designs, sustainability, continued IoT ML intelligent, adaptive, responsive

Language: Английский

A Review of Electroactive Polymers in Sensing and Actuator Applications

Actuators, Journal Year: 2025, Volume and Issue: 14(6), P. 258 - 258

Published: May 23, 2025

Electroactive polymers (EAPs) represent a versatile class of smart materials capable converting electrical stimuli into mechanical motion and vice versa, positioning them as key components in the next generation actuators sensors. This review summarizes recent developments both electronic ionic EAPs, highlighting their activation mechanisms, material architectures, multifunctional capabilities. Representative systems include dielectric elastomers, ferroelectric conducting polymers, liquid crystal gels. Advances fabrication methods, such additive manufacturing, nanocomposite engineering, patternable electrode deposition, are discussed with emphasis on miniaturization, stretchability, integration soft systems. Applications span biomedical devices, wearable electronics, robotics, environmental monitoring, growing interest platforms that combine actuation sensing within single structure. Finally, addresses critical challenges long-term stability scalability, outlines future directions toward self-powered, AI-integrated, sustainable EAP technologies.

Language: Английский

Electroactive Polymers for Self-Powered Actuators and Biosensors: Advancing Biomedical Diagnostics Through Energy Harvesting Mechanisms

Actuators, Journal Year: 2025, Volume and Issue: 14(6), P. 257 - 257

Published: May 23, 2025

Electroactive polymers (EAPs) have emerged as versatile materials for self-powered actuators and biosensors, revolutionizing biomedical diagnostics healthcare technologies. These harness various energy harvesting mechanisms, including piezoelectricity, triboelectricity, ionic conductivity, to enable real-time, energy-efficient, autonomous sensing actuation without external power sources. This review explores recent advancements in EAP-based systems, focusing on their applications biosensing, soft robotics, actuation. The integration of nanomaterials, flexible electronics, wireless communication technologies has significantly enhanced sensitivity, durability, multifunctionality, making them ideal next-generation wearable implantable medical devices. Additionally, this discusses key challenges, material stability, biocompatibility, optimization strategies performance. Future perspectives the clinical translation biosensors are also highlighted, emphasizing potential transform smart bioelectronic applications.

Language: Английский