Quasi-static analysis of an electrohydraulic actuator for a soft gripper

In this study, we develop an analytical model for an electrohydraulic actuator operating with polyethylene pouches, polydimethylsiloxane backbone plates, and dielectric fluids, to analyze its performance considering the displacement. We assume a soft gripper based on two facing electrohydraulic actuators and theoretically estimate the gripper performance in two respects: the workspace and the grasping force. Finally, we conduct parametric studies by varying three parameters: the length of backbone plate, the amount of dielectric fluid, and the permittivity of the dielectric fluid, to demonstrate the changes in performance according to their values.