Durability of Soft Pneumatic Actuators: A Review and Benchmarking Protocol

Soft pneumatic actuators (SPAs) have the potential to revolutionize automation in industries that require the handling of delicate and irregularly shaped objects. However, their limited operational lifetime has hindered widespread adoption. While conventional actuators can often tolerate 5–10 years of continuous operation with minimal maintenance, SPAs tend to degrade more rapidly due to issues such as material fatigue, delamination, and wear. Unfortunately, research aimed at addressing the limited operational lifetime of SPAs has been scarce and fragmented. Many studies do not assess SPA durability, and those that do utilize widely varying experimental methods, complicating fair comparison of the obtained results. This review provides a comprehensive overview of existing literature on SPA durability. Upon analyzing the reported testing methods and results, we propose a standardized testing protocol for characterizing SPA durability and outline promising directions for future research on enhancing the operational lifetime of SPAs. Hereby, we hope to accelerate advancements in SPA durability and consequently facilitate the widespread adoption of SPAs in industry.