Biomedical Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
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FIGURE 7.33
Experimental closed-loop tip response for 10-
×
20-mm IPMNC actuator for
a step voltage of 1 V.
(a)
(b)
FIGURE 7.34
(a) Fixture for impedance test; (b) Impedance analyzer.
The purpose of the test was to determine the voltage-to-current relationship in
the actuator over the frequency range from 5 to 1000 Hz. Multiple actuators were
tested to determine the uniformity of the impedance properties over the surface of
the sheet sent to us.
7.4.7
R
ESULTS
Figures 7.34(a) and 7.34(b) are pictures of the test setup used by Mallavarapu and
colleagues (Mallavarapu and Leo, 2001). The setup consisted of a small fixture to
hold the IPMNC samples. The fixture was electroded and connected to a BNC jack
to facilitate actuator testing. An HP 4192A LF (for low frequency) impedance
analyzer was used to collect the impedance data.
Five samples from the Artificial Muscle Research Institute were cut from the
material sent to Mallavarapu and coworkers at Virginia Tech. The samples were
