Dielectric actuator or sensor structure and method of making it

This application is a Divisional Application of U.S. Ser. No. 10/499,429 entitled “Dielectric Actuator or Sensor Structure and Method of Making It” to Mohamed Y. Benslimane, et al. filed on Dec. 30, 2004 and claims the benefit of the filing date thereof under U.S.C. §120 and incorporates it by reference herein. The present invention also claims priority from and incorporates by reference essential subject matter disclosed in International Application No. PCT/DK02/00862 filed on Dec. 17, 2002 and Danish Patent Application No. PA 2001 01933 filed on Dec. 21, 2001.

The present invention relates to dielectric actuators of the kind wherein electrostatic attraction between two electrodes located on an elastomeric body leads to a compression of the body in a first direction and a corresponding extension of the body in a second direction.

Such actuators may be employed as force sensors by operating the electrodes as the plates of a capacitor. In this mode of operation, compression of the elastomeric body by an external force will reduce the distance between the electrodes, causing an increase in capacitance of the electrode capacitor which can be measured to indicate the magnitude of the force.

It is an object of the invention to provide a dielectric actuator/sensor structure which is easy to produce and tolerant of production defects such as pinholes, cracks and inclusions in the body thereof. It is a further object of the invention to provide a method of making a dielectric actuator/sensor structure which provides a high yield while having advantages of simplicity and economy.

In accordance with one aspect of the invention, a dielectric actuator/sensor structure comprises a first sheet of elastomeric material having at least one smooth surface and a second surface and a second sheet of elastomeric material having at least one smooth surface and a second surface. The sheets are laminated together with their second surfaces exposed, and there is provided a first electrode on the second surface of the first sheet and a second electrode on the second surface of the second sheet.

In accordance with another aspect of the invention, a method of making a dielectric actuator/sensor structure comprises the steps of: a) providing a generally planar mould, b) casting a layer of elastomeric material in the mould, c) causing the layer to have a smooth surface and a second surface, d) curing the layer, and e) removing the layer from the mould to provide an elastomeric sheet having a smooth surface and a second surface. These steps are repeated in a step e) to provide a second elastomeric sheet having a smooth surface and a second surface. Electrodes are made on the sheets in a step f of depositing at least one electrically conductive layer on the second surface of each elastomeric sheet. The sheets are assembled into a finished actuator/sensor structure by g) laminating the elastomeric sheets together with their second surfaces exposed.

The laminated structure is a key factor in achieving production “robustness”. Consider, for example, the existence of minor defects such as pinholes, cracks or inclusions in each sheet. Even if cleanliness is observed in producing the sheets, a significant number of such defects may exist, even though it is only a minor number. In a single-sheet dielectric actuator/sensor, such defects may reduce the breakdown voltage between the electrodes by as much as 95% or even cause direct shorting of the electrodes.

Laminating two sheets together to form the final structure substantially eliminates this problem. As a starting point it can typically be assured by proper control of production that only a minor number of defects will exist and be spread randomly across each sheet. This in turn makes it very unlikely that two defects will be co-located in the assembled structure. Therefore, even if one layer of the assembled structure has a defect in a certain location, the other layer of the structure will most likely be defect-free in the same location. As a consequence, the probability of direct shorts is for all practical considerations reduced to zero, and the reduction of breakdown voltage from inclusions is limited to 50% at most.

Preferred embodiments of the invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 shows a generally planar mould having a micro-corrugated surface.

FIG. 2 shows a volume of curable elastomeric material poured on the mould.

FIG. 3 shows the effect of spinning the mould to smoothen the free surface of the elastomeric material.

FIG. 4 shows the elastomeric material removed from the mould as a sheet and provided with an electrode on its corrugated surface.

FIG. 5 shows two sheets laminated together to form a dielectric actuator/sensor structure.

FIG. 6 illustrates the passivation of defects such as pinholes and inclusions by virtue of the laminated construction of the dielectric actuator/sensor structure.

The generally planar mould 1 in FIG. 1 has a micro-corrugated surface 2 with ridges 3 and grooves 4 . The ridges and grooves run in parallel along a direction which is transverse to the plane of the paper. The peak-to-peak amplitude of the corrugations 3 , 4 is typically between 1 and 10 micrometers whereas the overall size of the mould is in the range of 5-10 centimeters across the corrugated surface or more. It is obvious that the drawing is not to scale and that the corrugations have been exaggerated for illustration. The mould may be manufactured from any suitable material such as metal or silicon, and the corrugation may be produced by conventional photolithographic or holographic processes.

In FIG. 2 , a volume of curable elastomeric material 5 has been poured on the mould 1 . The material may be a silicone rubber, for example.

In FIG. 3 , the elastomeric material 5 has been shaped into a sheet-like layer having a smooth upper surface 6 , by spinning the mould as indicated at 7 . Such spinning processes are well-known in the art of photolithography. An alternative way of causing the formation of a smooth upper surface 6 on the elastomeric layer 5 would be by pressing it into shape with a smooth die. After spinning or press-shaping, the elastomeric layer 5 is cured, which may just involve letting it sit on the mould for a certain amount of time, depending on the characteristics of the material.

FIG. 4 shows the elastomeric layer 5 removed from the mould to form a sheet 8 and turned upside down. Removing the sheet from the mould has exposed its second surface 9 , which is patterned with corrugations 10 and 11 as the surface of the mould. An electrode 12 has been deposited on the surface 9 . This may be done by vapor deposition of a metal such as silver, or by electrolytic techniques, for example.

The sheet 8 typically has a thickness of about 10-50 micrometers and the electrodes have a thickness of about 20-100 nanometers.

FIG. 5 shows a dielectric actuator/sensor structure assembled from two sheets 9 of the kind made and structured as just described. The sheets are laminated together with their smooth surfaces 6 touching each other and their second surfaces 9 exposed. Lamination is preferably done under vacuum to prevent the inclusion of gas bubbles between the sheets.

The corrugation of the exposed surfaces makes the laminated assembly highly anisotropic in its elastic behaviour. To this end, it is preferred to laminate the sheets together with the corrugations of both sheets running in parallel. In operation, a high voltage is applied between the electrodes on the corrugated surfaces. Electrostatic attraction between the electrodes will then tend to compress the structure. Facilitated by the corrugations, this compression will cause the structure to extend in length as its volume will tend to remain constant. Substantially no transverse change of dimensions (transverse to the paper plane) will occur because of the presence of the metallic electrodes on the anisotropic corrugations.

FIG. 6 illustrates the beneficial effects of the laminated structure with respect to defects and inclusions. Each sheet is shown with a pinhole 13 , 14 and an inclusion 15 , 16 of a metallic object. In a single-layer structure, the presence of pinholes 13 or 14 would cause a short between the electrodes 12 because electrode deposition runs down into the pinholes as shown at 17 . Metallic inclusions 15 , 16 reduce the remaining thickness of the elastomeric material 5 , which serves as an insulator between the electrodes 12 . In a single-layer structure, this may reduce the breakdown voltage between the electrodes severely.

In the laminated structure of FIG. 6 , however, there is still a defect-free single layer of elastomeric material between the electrodes 12 at each defect 13 , 14 , 15 , 16 . This reduces the occurrence of shorts substantially to zero, and limits the reduction of breakdown voltage to 50% at most. Of course, there is nothing to prevent the accidental co-location of two defects, but with proper cleanliness applied to production generally, the risk of this occuring will be very low indeed and much lower than the risk of defects in a single-layer structure.

It deserves to be mentioned that the laminated construction may be equally beneficially applied to dielectric actuator/sensor structures having patterned electrodes on smooth exposed surfaces to facilitate longitudinal extension, instead of solid electrodes on corrugated exposed surfaces.