The HASEL actuator’s muscle mimicking mechanism for enacting an upper limb smart prosthesis: A review on recent progress and challenges for future implementation

Abstract

Biomimicry is the method of adapting concepts from nature to produce more sustainable technologies for mankind. It is of particular interest to the biomedical soft robotic field specifically applied to smart prostheses. Unlike the typical prostheses that employs metal and geared actuators, a biomimicking smart prosthesis emphasizes on the use of highly complaint soft biocompatible materials. A recent advancement in this field is a biomimicking soft actuator known as the HASEL (Hydraulically Amplified Self-healing ELectrostatic) actuator. They represent a leap forward in the soft robotics field as they showcase many similarities with human muscles to the point that the actuator could easily be extended while in place. This paper reviews the susceptibility of the HASEL actuators for upper-limb smart prosthesis. We first reviewed the structural analysis of HASELs followed by their prevailing control system mechanisms. Finally, we concluded the paper by discussing the challenges for HASEL to be used as a smart prosthesis limiting to the upper-limb scenario.

Actuation Behavior of Hydraulically Amplified Self-Healing Electrostatic (HASEL) Actuator via Dimensional Analysis

“…Lastly, the current research is lacking detail regarding how the materials affect the actuator system as a whole. Some of the research considers different dielectric materials, but no formal in-depth study has focused on these materials individually and their collective behavior in the actuation system [13][14][15][16]. Thus, there is an overall disconnection between the theory and the experimentation, that can be connected via dimensional analysis.…”