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Application of Pascal's Law

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Dec 2, 2025

Modeling and Experimental Analysis of the Single-Shaft Coaxial Motor-Pump Assembly in Electrohydrostatic Actuators

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Linear and rotational microhydraulic actuators driven by electrowetting.

Jakub Kedzierski¹, Eric Holihan²

¹Massachusetts Institute of Technology Lincoln Laboratory, Lexington, MA 02420, USA. jakub@ll.mit.edu.

Science Robotics

|November 3, 2020

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

New microhydraulic actuators convert electrical to mechanical power with high efficiency and power density. These microscale devices achieve high force/weight ratios and precise movements, rivaling electric motors.

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Last Updated: Dec 2, 2025

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Area of Science:

Microelectromechanical systems (MEMS)
Fluidics
Actuation technologies

Background:

Traditional microactuators face limitations in power density and efficiency.
Electrowetting and surface tension principles offer potential for novel microactuation.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate the performance of microhydraulic actuators for microscale power conversion.
To characterize the power density, efficiency, and precision of linear and rotational microhydraulic actuators.

Main Methods:

Development and testing of microgram-scale linear and rotational microhydraulic actuators.
Simultaneous measurement of mechanical work output and electrical power input for efficiency characterization.
Analysis of actuator performance metrics including force/weight ratio, cycle frequency, precision, and acceleration.

Main Results:

Achieved output force/weight ratios of 5500, cycle frequencies of 4 kHz, sub-micrometer precision, and accelerations of 3 km/s².
Maximum power density reached 0.93 kW/kg, comparable to electric motors, with peak efficiency of 83%.
Rotational actuators exhibited torque density of 79 Nm/kg; power density scaled quadratically with decreasing droplet pitch.

Conclusions:

Microhydraulic actuators represent a significant advancement in microscale power conversion.
These actuators offer superior power density and efficiency compared to existing micro-motors.
Further development holds promise for applications requiring high-performance microactuation.