Membrane Pump for Synthetic Muscle Actuation

A synthetic muscle has been developed that uses inflatable balloons to produce a tensile force from a positive pressurization. Mechanical supply and ducting is used to provide the required pressurization. However, the mechanical supply and ducting that is currently used is limited in several respects. To optimize rate of actuation, it is desirable to minimize the cell volume and to maximize the area through which fluid is forced into the cell. Ideally, a fully closed cell that is inflated through some mass transfer process that takes place through the cell boundary would lead to a maximum cell response rate.