A linked manipulator with ion-polymer metal composite (IPMC) joints for soft- and micromanipulation

IPMCs are electroactive materials that bend in electric field. This paper describes a linked manipulator using IPMC joints. We argue that this design reduces the control complexity of an IPMC manipulator and increases the precision of the device. The design rationale stems from our theoretical work in material modeling. It suggests that when electrically decoupled short IPMC strips are connected to rigid links, the control of the IPMC manipulator, which is currently vaguely understood and highly non-linear, can be reduced to simple inverse kinematics serial chain manipulator control without the loss in efficiency. We validate our design by comparing the prototype device to a simple IPMC manipulator commonly investigated in the literature. The results show increased precision, reaction time and reachable workspace. We suggest that such a manipulator is suitable for soft and micromanipulation.