Artificial muscle with self-sensing based on liquid-crystal elastomer alloys and low melting point alloys
Materials scientists and engineers at the intersection of bioinspired materials and regenerative medicine are working to create shape-programmable, artificial muscles that can self-sense for medical applications. Haoran Liu and his team of researchers at Jiaotong University’s Frontier Institute of Science and Technology were inspired by the behavior of the muscles, nerves and bones of mammals and other organisms. They created a multifunctional synthetic muscle in the laboratory. The construct was made of polydopamine coated liquid crystal elastomer and low melting point alloys in a concentric rod or tube. The outer liquid crystal-elastomer was used to simulate reversible contracting and recovering, while the inner low melting point alloy was used to detect resistance and lock deformations. This is similar to the functions of bone and nerve. Artificial muscles were able to perform a variety of functions, such as bending and deformation in order to support heavy objects. This is an effective and direct approach for designing biomimetic soft device.
Soft robotics inspired by the skeleton-muscle-nerve system
Scientists are working to achieve biocompatibility of soft robotic elements with humans for assistance in movement and high-load bearing capacity. However, this is a challenging task. The majority of traditional robots still exist in industrial, aerospace, and agricultural settings, where they are used for load-bearing, sensor-based applications. In contrast, several functional soft robots depend on materials in order to improve the safety of human-machine interaction. Soft robots complement hard robots, and they have a wide range of applications. Biomimetic constructs have also provided alternative inspiration to emulate the skeleton-muscle-nerve system to facilitate agile movement and quick reaction or thinking, with a unique body shape to fit tasks and perform diverse physiological functions. Liu and colleagues were inspired by biomimicry in order to create multifunctional artificial muscle for smart applications.
Source:
https://techxplore.com/news/2022-05-self-sensing-artificial-muscle-based-liquid-crystal.html
