Elastic pneumatic actuators are fueling new devices and applications in soft robotics. Actuator miniaturization is critical to enable soft microsystems for applications in microfluidics and micromanipulation. This work proposes a fabrication technique to make out-of-plane bending microactuators entirely by soft lithography. The only bonding step required is to seal the embedded fluidic channels, assuring the structural integrity of the microactuators. The process consists of fabricating two SU8 mold halves using different lithographic layers. Polydimethilsiloxane is poured on the bottom mold, which is subsequently aligned and assembled with the top mold. The process allows for out-of-plane actuators with a diameter of 300 μm and for fabricating arrays of up to 36 actuators that are row addressable. These active micropillars have an aspect ratio of 1:1.5 and, when pressurized at 1 bar, show a bending angle of ∼30°.

中文翻译：

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用于软气动微致动器阵列的平面外软光刻

弹性气动执行器正在推动软机器人领域的新设备和应用。致动器小型化对于使软微系统用于微流体和显微操作应用至关重要。这项工作提出了一种完全通过软光刻制作平面外弯曲微致动器的制造技术。唯一需要的粘合步骤是密封嵌入的流体通道，确保微致动器的结构完整性。该过程包括使用不同的光刻层制造两个 SU8 半模。将聚二甲基硅氧烷倒在底部模具上，随后将其与顶部模具对齐并组装。该工艺允许直径为 300 μm 的平面外致动器和制造多达 36 个行可寻址致动器的阵列。