Small-scale soft grippers with environmentally responsive logic gates

Zhang, Xuan; Wu, Ya; Li, Yan; Jiang, He; Yang, Qinglin; Wang, Zichao; Wang, Yan; Fan, Xiao Dong; Kong, Jie

doi:10.1039/d2mh00097k

Cited by 9 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 58 publications

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“…This reprogrammable approach is in stark contrast to existing designs that are immutable post-fabrication. [6][7][8][9][10][14][15][16] Furthermore, all the aforementioned logic functions are inherently reversible and do not require manual resets, a crucial advantage for building complex networks-a feat not yet accomplished in many prior devices. [6][7][8][19][20][21][32][33][34] In conventional computing, constructing complex gates invariably necessitates layering multiple transistors, entailing significant efforts and energy dissipation during circuit assembly and calibration.…”

Section: Mechanical Logic Gatesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For example, various mechanical devices have been investigated for implementing binary information processes using mechanical metamaterials, [5][6][7][8]21] specific solvents, [9,10] pneumatics, [11,12] magnetics, [13,14] and thermal controls. [15,16] Nevertheless, most prior research has focused only on basic logic gates or nonvolatile memory, [24][25][26][27] without integrating these components into architectures capable of performing simple arithmetic computations, thus limiting mechanical computing's potential. This limitation stemmed from the ad hoc nature of computing building blocks, which restricted their modular design and scalability toward more advanced levels of physical intelligence.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Thermal Computing with Mechanical Transistors

Chen,

Song,

et al. 2024

Adv Funct Materials

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Mechanical computing has garnered significant interest as a supplement to traditional electronic computing, which often grapples with issues like high power consumption, security vulnerabilities, and susceptibility to extreme environmental conditions such as intense heat and radiation. Yet, most research in mechanical computing has been limited to the ad hoc design of simple logic gates and has not fully achieved the implementation of simple arithmetic computation within an electricity‐free framework. Additionally, progress in environmentally adaptive computing, crucial for decentralized intelligence, has also been slow. New ground is broken with the development of a mechanical transistor that synergizes a Kirigami thermomechanical sensor and a bistable actuator, enabling in‐memory computing for combinational and sequential logic. The design stands out by employing modular construction, symmetry breaking, and nonlinear materials, crafting logic gates, and memory units that respond to environmental stimuli through thermal delay. These transistors integrate design and material intelligence to establish nonvolatile memories, essential for logic‐in‐memory, and align thermal transport with mechanical deformation for environmental responsiveness. The mechanical transistor heralds a new age in mechanical computing, proving to be as versatile and vital as the electronic transistor has been in the era of modern computing.

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Section: Mechanical Logic Gatesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Thermal Computing with Mechanical Transistors

Chen,

Song,

et al. 2024

Adv Funct Materials

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“…[17] Gradient structured actuators can also offer enhanced control, robust-ness and flexibility due to continuous changes in their physical properties. [18] Previously gradient structured actuators have been fabricated from hydrogels, [8,15,[19][20][21] shape memory polymers, [22,23] graphene oxide membranes [24] and liquid crystal elastomers (LCEs). [25][26][27][28] In this work, we present a straightforward method for the fabrication of a gradient structured actuator with high cross-link density regions for strength and dimensional stability, and low cross-link density regions for compliance and elastic behavior.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Dual‐Responsive Gradient Structured Actuator via Photopolymerization‐Induced Diffusion

Sezen Polat,

Buurman,

Mulder

et al. 2024

Chemistry A European J

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Stimuli‐responsive materials have recently gained significant attention in the field of soft robotics, sensors, and biomimetic devices. The most facile way for the fabrication of such materials remains to endow bilayer structures which are fabricated with the combination of active and passive layers. Although, easily fabricated, these structures suffer from the generation of stress points between connection areas. In this work we develop a method to create a thin film with controlled cross‐link variation across its thickness. The cross‐link gradient is achieved through polymerization induced diffusion of dithiol molecules in thiol‐ene network. As a result, the film exhibits bending deformation upon illumination with light or exposure to a chemical solvent, thereby demonstrating dual responsiveness. Light actuation of the film achieved via photothermal effects due to the incorporation of dye into the system which can absorb UV light and heat the network. While solvent induced actuation is due to anisotropic swelling. Furthermore, the straightforward fabrication procedure allowed for the creation of more complex deformations by patterning the film using a photomask during photopolymerization.

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“…Animals and plants in nature are intelligently responsive to changing environments, displaying diverse deformations and motions to survive and evolve. , Inspired by these living organisms, various soft actuators that can respond to external stimuli, especially light, humidity, chemical fuels, electrical, and magnetic field have been developed to benefit soft robotics, flexible electronics, and biomedical fields. , Compared with the soft actuators with single responsive capability to stimulus, the multi-stimuli responsive soft actuators can meet the multifunctional requirements, having drawn a great deal of attention. , Weng et al explored the different 3D shape deformations of the light/humidity-triggered graphite paper/polymer actuator and demonstrated the application for manipulating objects . Du et al designed the temperature-responsive hydrogel-based millirobots embedded with magnetic particles, which showed crawling, swinging, and rolling and shrinkingly went through a narrow tube .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Multi-Stimuli Responsive Soft Actuator with Locally Controllable and Programmable Complex Shape Deformations

Zhang

Wang

Sun

et al. 2023

ACS Appl. Polym. Mater.

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The soft actuators capable of responding to multiple stimuli and adapting to changing environments have attracted growing interest in the flexible multifunctional materials. However, how to achieve high degree of freedom (DoF), precise control, and complex shape transformation of the multi-stimuli responsive soft actuator, still remains challenging. Here, we report a multi-responsive soft actuator with various controllable sophisticated deformations by integrating a magnetically sensitive elastomer (MSE) with a liquid crystal elastomer (LCE). Through regulating the stimuli strength and the geometrical dimensions and material parameters of elastomers, the bending angle and curling curvature of the actuator are accurately controlled ranging from 0 to 58.9° and from 0.23 to 1.29 cm–1, respectively. The facile material-structural synergistic design drives the complex 3D shape deformations (e.g., bidirectional bending, shrinkage/bending, rolling/bending, and twisting/bending) of the actuator. More importantly, due to its photosensitive characteristics, the shape-morphing of the actuator can be manipulated locally and sequentially, which markedly enriches the DoFs. The flower-shaped actuator displays multiple deformation modes, and the hand-shaped actuator transforms between 8 gestures under the control of laser and magnetic field, proving that the multi-responsive soft actuators have great application potentials in future bioengineering, soft manipulators, and flexible electronics.

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Small-scale soft grippers with environmentally responsive logic gates

Abstract: Small-scale soft grippers are adaptive and deformable, and can be utilized for confined environments (e.g., the human body). Small-scale soft grippers require logic-based computation to achieve intelligent control and perform...

Cited by 9 publications

References 58 publications

Thermal Computing with Mechanical Transistors

Thermal Computing with Mechanical Transistors

Dual‐Responsive Gradient Structured Actuator via Photopolymerization‐Induced Diffusion

Multi-Stimuli Responsive Soft Actuator with Locally Controllable and Programmable Complex Shape Deformations

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