Optimal Design of the Electroadhesion Pad with a Dual-Insulating Layer for Climbing Robots

Abstract

The electroadhesion pad is mainly studied for applications, such as climbing robots and grippers. In this paper, we present our study with the confirmation of the adhesion properties of the electroadhesion pad with a double-insulating layer, pad modeling, and optimal design. Modeling and analysis consider the air layer generated during the manufacturing of both conventional single-insulated structures and dual-insulated structures. Through the finite element analysis simulation, the characteristics of the electroadhesion were verified, and modeling verification was performed, based on the variables that had a large influence as follows: applied voltage, electrode area, dielectric thickness, and permittivity. The electrode is made of aluminum, the substrate is made of silicon, and the dielectric is made of polyimide film. An error of up to 8.3% was found between the modeling and simulation. The optimization results were validated based on a pad applied to a climbing robot measuring 320×480mm² and weighing 2.8 kg. As a result, the optimal pad design resulted in an error of 7.3% between the modeling and simulation.

Bending, electroadhesion and sensing performances of single compliant electrode dielectric elastomer actuator based on SEBS gel

“…The EA stress, applied voltage, and electrode type of a three-layer stacked SCE-SEBS/WO-60 were compared to those of other types of EA materials. The EA stress of the three-layer stacked SCE-SEBS/WO-60 is significantly higher compared to other types of EA pad materials at lower applied voltage, including aluminum oxide/polydimethylsiloxane (Al 2 O 3 /PDMS), conductive inks/poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET), and liquid metal/PDMS, as illustrated in figure 9 and summarized in table 2 [15,[34][35][36][37][38][39][40][41].…”