Frequency response of IPMC actuators: physical characterization and identification for control

Ionic polymer metal composite (IPMC) actuators have promising applications in robotics and medicine in a not distance future, which will require a big knowledge in different fields, such as, manufacturing, material characterization and control theory. In this paper, frequency response of several IPMC actuators, cut from the same bulk IPMC sheet with a micro laser etching machine, is analyzed. Specifically, the objective is to 1) characterize each actuator, i.e., determine how cutting affects to the parameters of the physical model of this kind of actuators, and 2) identify a model for each actuator for control purposes. The frequency responses have been obtained experimentally in LabVIEW by attaching a couple of gold electrodes to each IPMC unit and measuring the tip deection by means of a laser distance meter.