Jafarzadeh Sina, Skov Anne Ladegaard
Danish Polymer Center, Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, Technical University of Denmark, Kgs. Lyngby, 2800, Denmark.
Adv Sci (Weinh). 2025 Sep;12(33):e04803. doi: 10.1002/advs.202504803. Epub 2025 Jun 27.
Hollow fiber dielectric elastomer actuators (HFDEAs) offer several advantages over their conventional counterpart, planar dielectric elastomer actuators (DEAs). Due to their simple shape, flexibility, and conformability, HFDEAs are promising candidates for complex applications within soft robotics. This paper offers a comprehensive comparison between the actuation behavior of planar and HFDEAs using both analytical and numerical models. An electro-mechanical model establishes analytical correlations between the applied voltage and resulting strain. The results from the simplified model are subsequently compared with a numerical model in COMSOL Multiphysics, where simulations are run in more realistic conditions. Supporting experiments are conducted on HFDEAs with different geometries to validate the model. A geometric factor, β, is introduced to account for the influence of geometric parameters on actuator performance. The results show that HFDEAs exhibit higher strain compared to planar films. Among the different fiber geometries, those with smaller internal diameters and thinner walls exhibit higher axial strain and holding force while using the least amount of material. This study highlights the advantages of hollow fiber DEAs compared to their planar counterparts, especially in applications where lighter, more efficient structures with greater strain capabilities are essential.
中空纤维介电弹性体致动器（HFDEA）相较于传统的平面介电弹性体致动器（DEA）具有若干优势。由于其形状简单、柔韧性好且可贴合，HFDEA是软机器人复杂应用的有前途的候选者。本文使用解析模型和数值模型对平面和HFDEA的致动行为进行了全面比较。一个机电模型建立了施加电压与产生应变之间的解析相关性。简化模型的结果随后与COMSOL Multiphysics中的数值模型进行比较，在该数值模型中，模拟在更现实的条件下运行。对具有不同几何形状的HFDEA进行了支持性实验以验证模型。引入了一个几何因子β来考虑几何参数对致动器性能的影响。结果表明，与平面薄膜相比，HFDEA表现出更高的应变。在不同的纤维几何形状中，那些内径较小且壁较薄的在使用最少材料的情况下表现出更高的轴向应变和保持力。这项研究突出了中空纤维DEA相较于平面DEA的优势，特别是在对重量更轻、效率更高且具有更大应变能力的结构至关重要的应用中。
