Modeling contacts of ionic polymer metal composites based tactile sensors

We report the first attempt to model the contacts of an ionic polymer metal composite (IPMC) based tactile sensor. The tactile sensor comprises an IPMC actuator, an IPMC sensor and the target to be detected. The system makes use of multiple contacts to work: the actuator comes into contact with the sensor and pushes the movement of sensor; the contact between the sensor and the object detects the existence and the stiffness of the target. We integrate modeling of various physical processes involved in IPMC devices to form a simulation scheme. An iteration and optimization strategy is also described to correlate the experimental and simulation results of an IPMC bending actuator to identify the two key parameters used in electromechanical transduction. Modeling the multiple contacts will aid the design and optimization of such IPMC based soft robotics.