Biomedical Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
FIGURE 4.59
Close-up of the attachment of the fabricated biceps PAN muscle on a life-size
human forearm skeleton showing the controller board housed in the pelvic bone area and
solenoid valves attached to the humerus and ulna bones, respectively. We also designed and
built a simple pH meter with PAN fiber bundles using the parallel type packaging of the fibers
as shown earlier (fig. 4.55). The picture shown is a rotary-type pH meter taking up a small
space and fairly accurate for most cases.
FIGURE 4.60
Linear platform actuator for use in robotics.
This work introduces a method by which the PAN muscle may be elongated or
contracted in an electric field. It is believed that for the first time this has been
achieved with PAN fibers as artificial muscles. In this new development, the PAN
muscle is first put in close contact with one of the two platinum wires (electrodes)
immersed in an aqueous solution of sodium chloride. Applying an electric voltage
between the two wires changes the local acidity of the solution in the regions close
to the platinum wires (figs. 4.60 and 4.61). This is because of the ionization of
sodium chloride molecules and the accumulation of Na
+
and Cl
-
ions at the negative
and positive electrode sites, respectively.
This ion accumulation, in turn, is accompanied by a sharp increase and decrease
of the local acidity in the regions close to either of the platinum wires. An artificial
