Accurate and Anti-Interference Control of Computer Vision-Assisted Light-Driven Liquid Crystal Elastomer Actuator

Photoresponsive liquid crystal elastomer (LCE) plays an important role in soft robotics and other high-tech fields. The deformation of smart materials directly affects the behavior of the actuator, which needs to be accurately controlled. However, existing control methods for light-driven LCE actuators often rely on empirical data or simplistic feedback systems, which can be imprecise and susceptible to interference. Developing an accurate and anti-interference control method for photoresponsive LCE actuators remains a significant challenge. Herein, a computer vision-assisted light-driven LCE for accurate control of bending actions of the LCE actuator is proposed. The control system effectively mitigates instability in the bending angle caused by environmental factors such as light, wind, and changes in the surrounding medium. Furthermore, a “lift bridge” for ants moving between two platforms and an oscillator with modulable angular interval and frequency are demonstrated. The proposed system provides a general strategy for accurate and anti-interference control for photoresponsive LCE actuators, which can be extended to complex actions, multifunctions, and multistimuli actuators, showing wide application potential in soft actuators and soft robots. © 2024 The Author(s). Advanced Intelligent Systems published by Wiley-VCH GmbH.