A Soft Jellyfish Robot Driven by a Dielectric Elastomer Actuator

Although dielectric elastomers have been extensively studied recently, to date there has been little research into application of dielectric elastomer actuators to undersea robots. This letter focuses on development of a jellyfish robot using a dielectric elastomer actuator, which exhibits muscle-like properties including large deformation and high energy density. We carry out experiments to test the actuator’s deformation and force. Theoretical simulations are conducted to analyze the performance of the actuator, which are qualitatively consistent with the experiments. The preliminary studies show that this jellyfish robot based on dielectric elastomer technology can move effectively in water. The robot also exhibits fast response and high capacity of payload (compared to its self-weight).