An integrated electroactive polymer sensor– actuator: design, model-based control, and performance characterization

Ionic electroactive polymers (IEAPs), particularly ionic polymer-metal composites (IPMCs) and carbon-polymer composites (CPCs), bend when a voltage is applied on their electrodes, and conversely, they generate an electrical signal when subjected to a mechanical bending. In this work we study and compare the capabilities of IPMC and CPC actuators and sensors in closedloop control applications. We propose and realize an integrated IEAP sensor–actuator design, characterize its performance using three different materials, and compare the results. The design consists of two short IEAP actuators and one sensor mechanically coupled together in a parallel configuration, and an attached rigid extension significantly longer than the IEAPs. This allows the device to be compliant, simple to construct, lightweight, easy to miniaturize, and functionally similar to a one-degree-of-freedom rotational joint. For control design and accurate position sensing in feedback experiments, we adapt physics-based and control-oriented models of actuation and sensing dynamics, and perform experiments to identify their parameters. In performance characterization, both model-based ¥ H control and proportional-integral control are explored. System responses to step inputs, sinusoids, and random references are measured, and long-duration sinusoidal tracking experiments are performed. The results show that, while IEAP position sensing is stable for only a limited time-span, H∞ control significantly improves the performance of the device.