Pneumatic Soft Actuator Based on Origami Structure

Abstract In order to improve the deformability of the actuator, this paper proposes a pneumatic soft actuator based on origami structure. The structural design of the actuator, theoretical analysis, and validation, the influence of parameters on the output characteristics, the manufacturing process are described in detail, and finally, an experimental platform was built based on the actual actuator that was fabricated, and the splaying angle and output torque of the actuator were tested. The actuator has a splaying angle of up to 102 deg at an input pressure of 3.0 kPa, and an output torque of 0.387 N/mm per unit area at an initial splaying angle and an input pressure of 6.0 kPa. The results show that compared to folded and nonfolded actuators, the deformation of the origami actuator in this article mainly relies on the large folding ratio of the origami structure itself rather than the characteristics of the material, so it possesses deformability and larger output torque, effectively solving the issues of poor deformability and low output torque the soft actuator, and it has a good application prospect .The device improves the portability and functionality of the soft drive by means of a predesigned folding structure that achieves a large folding ratio when inflated. In addition, it can provide a certain torque while avoiding the risk of impact on rigid machinery, and can be used for clamping and pressing of fragile items. The device provides new structural implications for soft drives and actuators.