Pneumatic Actuators Fabricated from Silicone Foam
- Detailed Technology Description
- This invention is a unique way to fabricate pneumatic actuators in complex 2D and 3D geometries using porous silicone foam.
- Others
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Shepherd Research Group, Soft Polymer Open-Celled Foam Pneumatic Actuators, Cornell New Business and Emerging Technology Showcase 2014 poster
PCT Application WO2015157560
- *Abstract
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The foam is produced by mixing and casting a silicone/salt mixture, which is then cured (at room temperature) and subsequently heated to vaporize the salt, leaving a porous silicone foam. The foam is then sealed with a pure silicone coating to enable it to be pressurized with gas. When air is injected into the foam, the materials act as an actuator. Linear, bending and radial actuation can all be attained via the addition of strain-limiting layers. As an example, bending actuation was demonstrated by adding carbon fiber veil layers to the bottom of a sealed rectangular foam.
This foam fabrication technique enables designflexibility in that it can produce both 2D and 3D actuators. To produce 2Dactuators, the foam is cast into large sheets from which a large number ofactuators can be cut. For truly 3D actuators, the foam can easily be cast in 3Dmolds of any moldable geometry.
Potential Applications
- Artificial muscles
- Prosthetics
Advantages
- Can be molded into complex 3-dimensional geometries
- Uses very little silicone material
- *Licensing
- Carolyn A. Theodorecat42@cornell.edu (607) 254 4514
- Country/Region
- USA
