SFA-AM - Strategic Focus Area Advanced Manufacturing
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MANUFHAPTICS

Manufacturing of Actuators Integrated in Active Exoskeletons
Background and main goal
In several application areas, such as assistive devices for rehabilitation, soft exoskeletons to support active lifestyles, and haptic devices for teleoperation and for immersive virtual reality gaming, there is a need for compliant active wearables. However, despite rapid progress in additive manufacturing of soft structures, the direct integration of dense arrays of electrically-controlled actuators in printed wearables remains elusive.

The main goal of MANUFHAPTICS is to develop novel functional materials and scalable additive manufacturing processes for soft actuators that are directly integrated in an elastomer exoskeleton. Three types of electrically-driven actuators will be fabricated. The main demonstrator will be a digitally manufactured soft glove, making virtual objects feel real.
Idea and approach
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Novel functional materials as well as multi-material printing and hybrid integration processes will be developed to allow the seamless integration of electrically-driven actuators in active soft systems. This will enable a broad range of complex soft active systems, that require no pumps or compressors to achieve complex operation.
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The key building blocks of the MANUFHAPTICS project are:
  • Materials for printable inks: Development of high-performance dielectric materials for high energy density actuators and of inks enabling sacrificial layers which are compatible with different printing tools
  • Multi-material printing processes: Establishment of digital printing methods, such as inkjet, aerosol jet and direct ink writing, for the deposition of structural and functional materials over multiple size scales
  • Devices and systems integration: Development of digitally fabricated soft electrostatic actuators and their integration in soft 3D printed structures

With these technologies, three types of actuators will be developed:
  1. High force electrostatic clutch actuators that can block finger joints
  2. Millimeter-sized hydraulically amplified electrostatic actuators for skin stretching
  3. Multi-layer dielectric elastomer actuators for rich tactile feedback.
Demonstrator
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Digitally manufactured soft multi-modal haptic glove
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​MANUFHAPTIC’s main demonstrator will be a digitally manufactured soft multi-modal haptic glove with arrays of actuators and sensors for augmented reality and virtual reality applications. Actuators distributed over the fingers and hand will deliver touch and feedback sensations as well as orientation and blocking of the movement. Additional sensors will provide information on the position of the hand, with technology coming from the SFA-AM project D-SENSE, in which piezoresistive and capacitive soft sensors are produced by direct ink writing.
Technical challenges
  • Soft actuators with a very high energy-density
  • Customization of exoskeleton for each user to comfortably exert large forces on different body parts
  • High-permittivity compliant dielectrics, fluidic coupling, stretchable electrodes, and high breakdown strength polymers designed to be compatible with direct ink writing, aerosol jet or drop on demand manufacturing
  • Exoskeleton architecture controlled over a range of length scales, i.e., micrometer and millimeter thick layers must be assembled into complex several centimeters long 3D shapes with controlled porosity
Consortium
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Soft Transducers Lab, ​
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EPF Lausanne
Prof. Dr. Herbert Shea (project leader)
Fatemeh Fasijani (PhD student)
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Complex Materials Group,
​ETH Zürich
Prof. Dr. André Studart (principal investigator)
Dr. Fergal Coulter
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Soft Materials Group,
​ETH Zürich
Prof. Dr. Jan Vermant (principal investigator)
Dr. Alexandra Bayles
Tazio Pleij (PhD student)
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Laboratory for Functional Polymers, ​
Empa
Dr. Dorina Opris (principal investigator)
Patrick Danner (PhD student)
Involved and supporting industry partners
  • Logitech Europe S.A.
  • Hylomorph AG
  • Spectroplast AG
  • BELIMO Automation AG
  • AG Cilander
  • IBM Research GmbH
  • Datwyler Switzerland Inc.
Key project data 
Project Duration:
July 2021 - June 2025 (48 months)
Project Funding:
1.38 million CHF
Linked scientific publications
2023
  • Danner, P. M., T. Pleij, G. Siqueira, A. V. Bayles, T. R. Venkatesan, J. Vermant and D. M. Opris (2023). "Polysiloxane Inks for Multimaterial 3d Printing of High-Permittivity Dielectric Elastomers." Advanced Functional Materials: 2313167.
  • von Szczepanski, J., P. Danner and D. Opris (2023). "Self-healable, high-permittivity elastomers for dielectric elastomer actuators." Proc. SPIE 12482, Electroactive Polymer Actuators and Devices (EAPAD) XXV: 124820E.

2022
  • Danner, P. M., M. Iacob, G. Sasso, I. Burda, B. Rieger, F. Nüesch and D. M. Opris (2022). "Solvent-Free Synthesis and Processing of Conductive Elastomer Composites for Green Dielectric Elastomer Transducers." Macromolecular Rapid Communications 43(6): 2100823.
  • Sheima, Y., J. von Szczepanski, P. M. Danner, T. Künniger, A. Remhof, H. Frauenrath and D. M. Opris (2022). "Transient Elastomers with High Dielectric Permittivity for Actuators, Sensors, and Beyond." ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces 14(35): 40257-40265.
  • von Szczepanski, J., P. M. Danner and D. M. Opris (2022). "Self-Healable, Self-Repairable, and Recyclable Electrically Responsive Artificial Muscles." Advanced Science 9(22): 2202153.
An initiative of the ETH Board
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Participating Institutions of the ETH Domain
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Disclaimer
Imprint
© COPYRIGHT 2021. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
  • Home
  • Focus Areas
    • Focus Areas 2017-2020 >
      • Precision Free-Form Manufacturing
      • Printed Electronics
      • Sustainable Digital Manufacturing and Design
      • Sensing Technologies
      • Intelligent Systems and Advanced Automation
    • Focus Areas 2021-2024 >
      • Manufacturing Technologies
      • Functionality Integration
      • Sensing Technologies
      • Intelligent Systems and Advanced Automation
  • Projects
    • Projects Initial Program 2017-2020 >
      • Ceramic X.0
      • FUORCLAM
      • Powder Focusing
      • PREAMPA
      • FOXIP
      • CFRP-AM
      • SD4D
    • Projects Expansion Program 2017-2020 >
      • D-SENSE
      • MOCONT
      • Nano Assembly
      • SOL4BAT
    • Projects Program 2021-2024 >
      • AMYS
      • ClosedLoop-LM
      • DiPrintProtect
      • MANUFHAPTICS
      • Microfluidics
      • Multi-Mat
      • SCALAR
      • SMARTAM
  • Investments
    • Capacity Buildup >
      • ALIVE Initiative
      • ANAXAM Center
      • M2C Platform
      • Professorships
    • Technology Platforms >
      • Synthesis & Fabrication
      • Characterization & Measurement
  • Events
    • Annual Meetings >
      • Annual Review Meeting 2024
      • Annual Review Meeting 2023
      • Annual Review Meeting 2022
      • Annual Review Meeting 2021
      • Annual Review Meeting 2020
      • Annual Review Meeting 2019
      • Annual Review Meeting 2018
    • Industry Workshops >
      • Sensors
    • Other Events >
      • Joint Initiatives AMKT Event
      • CERAMIC X.0 Workshop
      • Workshop 13 July 2020
      • Launch Event 13 Nov 2017
      • Workshop 6 July 2017
      • Workshop 17 Oct 2016
    • SAMCE
  • About
    • Steering Committee
    • Participating ETH Institutions
    • Calls & Selection >
      • Initial Program 2017-2020
      • Expansion Program 2017-2020
      • Continuation Program 2021-2024
  • Contact