Portable, High-Frequency, and High-Voltage Control Circuits for Untethered Miniature Robots Driven by Dielectric Elastomer Actuators
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arXiv
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| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Preprint |
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2025
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| _version_ | 1866911148511592448 |
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| author | Shao, Qi Liu, Xin-Jun Zhao, Huichan |
| author_facet | Shao, Qi Liu, Xin-Jun Zhao, Huichan |
| contents | In this work, we propose a high-voltage, high-frequency control circuit for the untethered applications of dielectric elastomer actuators (DEAs). The circuit board leverages low-voltage resistive components connected in series to control voltages of up to 1.8 kV within a compact size, suitable for frequencies ranging from 0 to 1 kHz. A single-channel control board weighs only 2.5 g. We tested the performance of the control circuit under different load conditions and power supplies. Based on this control circuit, along with a commercial miniature high-voltage power converter, we construct an untethered crawling robot driven by a cylindrical DEA. The 42-g untethered robots successfully obtained crawling locomotion on a bench and within a pipeline at a driving frequency of 15 Hz, while simultaneously transmitting real-time video data via an onboard camera and antenna. Our work provides a practical way to use low-voltage control electronics to achieve the untethered driving of DEAs, and therefore portable and wearable devices. |
| format | Preprint |
| id |
arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2502_06166 |
| institution | arXiv |
| publishDate | 2025 |
| record_format | arxiv |
| spellingShingle | Portable, High-Frequency, and High-Voltage Control Circuits for Untethered Miniature Robots Driven by Dielectric Elastomer Actuators Shao, Qi Liu, Xin-Jun Zhao, Huichan Robotics In this work, we propose a high-voltage, high-frequency control circuit for the untethered applications of dielectric elastomer actuators (DEAs). The circuit board leverages low-voltage resistive components connected in series to control voltages of up to 1.8 kV within a compact size, suitable for frequencies ranging from 0 to 1 kHz. A single-channel control board weighs only 2.5 g. We tested the performance of the control circuit under different load conditions and power supplies. Based on this control circuit, along with a commercial miniature high-voltage power converter, we construct an untethered crawling robot driven by a cylindrical DEA. The 42-g untethered robots successfully obtained crawling locomotion on a bench and within a pipeline at a driving frequency of 15 Hz, while simultaneously transmitting real-time video data via an onboard camera and antenna. Our work provides a practical way to use low-voltage control electronics to achieve the untethered driving of DEAs, and therefore portable and wearable devices. |
| title | Portable, High-Frequency, and High-Voltage Control Circuits for Untethered Miniature Robots Driven by Dielectric Elastomer Actuators |
| topic | Robotics |
| url | https://arxiv.org/abs/2502.06166 |