Electroactive polymer actuator and diaphragm pump using the same

An electroactive polymer actuator comprising:

• a plurality of laminates each having a triangular prism shape, each of said laminates including a pair of electrodes and an electroactive polymer member, which are alternately placed in a direction of a vertical line extending from a vertex of a triangle that is a general surface of said triangular prism to a base of said triangle, said laminates being arranged as a whole in a polygonal pattern such that the vertex of said triangle is positioned in the vicinity of a center of said polygonal pattern, and each of said laminates is spaced from an adjacent laminate by a required distance;
• and
• a voltage applying means for applying a voltage between said electrodes spaced from each other by said electroactive polymer material with respect to each of said laminates, to thereby cause a deformation in said laminate.

An electroactive polymer actuator comprising:

• a spiral structure formed by winding a laminate including an elongated sheet of an electroactive polymer material, a pair of first and second electrode layers formed on opposite surfaces of said elongated sheet, and an insulation layer formed on one of the said electrode layers;
• and
• a voltage applying means for applying a voltage between said electrode layers to cause a deformation in said spiral structure.

An electroactive polymer actuator comprises:

• a laminate formed by alternately placing a plurality of ring members of an electroactive polymer material having different diameters and a plurality of ring electrodes having different diameters such that each of said ring members is positioned between inner and outer peripheral surfaces of adjacent ring electrodes;
• and
• a voltage applying means for applying a voltage(s) between odd-numbered ring electrodes and even-numbered ring electrodes in the case of counting said ring electrodes in order from an innermost ring electrode of said laminate, to thereby cause a deformation in said laminate.