Design, Fabrication, and Demonstration of Soft Thin-Film Actuators

Soft actuators present promising properties regarding applications in soft robotics and human-machine interfaces. Especially when directly interfacing with human skin, soft thin actuators can match the mechanical coupling with human tissue. The exploration of improving the performance and robustness of soft actuators is crucial for the development of flexible devices. The demand for robust, flexible devices poses challenges to the performance and manufacturing methods of the actuators. The article illustrates techniques for the design and fabrication of soft thin-film actuators. These soft actuators are robust, and demonstrate potential in versatile scenarios. This protocol shows the potential of the thin-film actuators in three different applications. First, a crawling robot driven by soft thin-film actuators was fabricated. The robot is extremely robust. It can survive continuous hammering and remain functional even with three metal needles punctured through its body. Second, a soft robotic gripper, which can perform fine manipulation such as grasping a piece of paper without damaging it, was fabricated. Third, a haptic feedback device with a thin-film actuator was fabricated, which can provide touching feedback when interacting with human skin. This protocol demonstrates efficient fabrication processes for robust soft thin-film actuators, with various application potential for driving robust soft robotics.