Unlocking holistic control of a phototropic liquid crystal polymer by global illumination

Light-driven material systems enable remote control of miniature structures in small-scale manipulation. However, conventional methods often rely on locally focused light, necessitating complex alignment setups and complicating precise modeling. Here, we introduce a versatile framework based on wide-area global illumination to achieve tunable and precise shape control with a simple light setup. By characterizing the feedback loop between light projection and material deformation, we elucidated the fundamental relationship between light field conditions and shape changes in thin-film liquid crystal polymer (LCP) actuators. Based on this, we develop a photo-thermal-mechanical (PTM) kinematic model for accurately predicting actuator deformation. The function of our proposed method has been validated through diverse prototypes, including robotic crawlers, a ball drop-and-catch system with real-time path prediction, and a reconfigurable robotic hand showing 6 different gestures. Our proposed strategy holds great promise for advancing the capabilities of miniature light-driven material systems in robotics and engineering applications.