The Design of a Polymeric Piezoelectric Actuator for and    Anthropomorphic End Effector
{'Code': '07030000', 'Directorate': {'Abbreviation': 'ENG', 'LongName': 'Directorate For Engineering'}, 'Division': {'Abbreviation': 'CMMI', 'LongName': 'Div Of Civil, Mechanical, & Manufact Inn'}}
{'SignBlockName': 'K. (Cheena) Srinivasan', 'PO_EMAI': None, 'PO_PHON': None}
The primary objective of this Engineering Initiation Award                 research project is to design, build and test an actuator for a                 dexterous light weight mechanism which is to be used as an end                  effector for a robot.  This end effector will be an anthropomorphic             hand similar in design concept to the UTAH/MIT hand except that the             actuators will be fabricated from polymeric piezoelectric materials.            In order to achieve the above, the following research objectives                have been established for this project: (1) Using the UTAH/MIT and              Hitachi hands as a guide for finger and wrist design, determine the             actuating forces and displacements that are required to carry                   reasonable pay loads, (2) Design an actuator with the required                  displacement and load carrying capacity determined above using a                piezoelectric material such as poly(vinylidene fluoride). Included              in the design phase will be the development of the theory for                   analysis and control of such an actuator, (3) Build the actuator and            determine its performance.  Included in the performance evaluation              will be the determination of displacements, forces, response times,             and life, and (4) Develop the plan for a research program to design,            build, and test a dexterous hand using polymeric piezoelectric                  actuators.                                                                            An actuating system using a polymeric piezoelectric material              is potentially more lightweight, compact, sensitive, compliant, and             responsive than present systems which are based on pneumatic and                heat sensitive devices.  Since polymers are both flexible and                   capable of being molded into complex shapes, the actuating system               can be placed closer to the anthropomorphic end effector resulting              in shorter tendons (force transmission elements) and more positive              control.  In addition, since a piezoelectric actuator is an                     electrical device, digital computer control using digital to analog             devices are more easily developed and lighter in weight than                    electrical to pneumatic or electrical to temperature based devices              that are required on current anthropomorphic hands.  A successful               design for robot applications will also have application to                     biomedical devices such as artificial limbs.
{'FirstName': 'James', 'LastName': 'Blechschmidt', 'PI_MID_INIT': 'L', 'PI_SUFX_NAME': None, 'PI_FULL_NAME': 'James L Blechschmidt', 'EmailAddress': None, 'NSF_ID': '000336651', 'StartDate': '09/01/1987', 'EndDate': None, 'RoleCode': 'Principal Investigator'}
{'Name': 'Arizona State University', 'CityName': 'TEMPE', 'ZipCode': '852813670', 'PhoneNumber': '4809655479', 'StreetAddress': '660 S MILL AVENUE STE 204', 'StreetAddress2': None, 'CountryName': 'United States', 'StateName': 'Arizona', 'StateCode': 'AZ', 'CONGRESSDISTRICT': '04', 'CONGRESS_DISTRICT_ORG': 'AZ04', 'ORG_UEI_NUM': 'NTLHJXM55KZ6', 'ORG_LGL_BUS_NAME': 'ARIZONA STATE UNIVERSITY', 'ORG_PRNT_UEI_NUM': None}
{'Name': None, 'CityName': None, 'StateCode': None, 'ZipCode': None, 'StreetAddress': None, 'CountryCode': None, 'CountryName': None, 'StateName': None, 'CountryFlag': None, 'CONGRESSDISTRICT': None, 'CONGRESS_DISTRICT_PERF': '""'}
{'Code': '1468', 'Text': 'Manufacturing Machines & Equip'}
{'url': 'https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/download?DownloadFileName=1987&All=true', 'xml': '8708938.xml'}