MR based control of soft actuators

This movie shows the three class of devices tested. For each, a continuous flow of MR fluid was provided using a peristaltic pump.
First, the 1 DoF loop actuator is shown. With the application of a magnetic field downstream of the actuator, the pressure increases, and the actuator bends.
Second, the gripper consisting of three coupled actuators is shown. With the application of a magnetic field downstream of the device, all three actuators bend simultaneously.

Finally, the device consisting of two independent actuators is shown. Using two magnets, every combination of the device's bending states can be achieved. The inset shows the location of the magnetic fields and the resulting bending states.

Additional details can be found in the open access paper here https://doi.org/10.1002/aisy.202000139