Laminate actuators and valves
AssigneeEnergy Related Devices, Inc.
InventorsRobert G. Hockaday, Patrick S. Turner, Marc D. DeJohn, Liviu Popa-Simil, Laura A. Hockaday
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Artificial stoma formed with multilayered structures that actuate with humidity, temperature, chemical environment or light. These actuators can be incorporated into shoes, apparel, fuel cells, machinery, and buildings to control fluid flow or diffusion to regulate humidity, temperature, chemical environment, or light. These actuators can be used as sensors, modify structure, or appearance for greater function, comfort, or aesthetics.
Claims63
An actuated mechanical structure, said mechanical structure including at least one actuator, said actuator including actuation components and formed integral to a sheet or sheets, curved surface, fiber, cylinder, sphere, polygon, or polymorphic surface of material, wherein actuation of said actuator is effected by differential expansion or contraction of two or more adjacent materials and with slit, groove, open perforation, fold, dimple, fiber, deposit, lamination, slits, grooves, pores, open perforations, folds, fibers, deposits, laminations, or dimples of the surface, wherein said actuator actuates integral apertures, creates mechanical displacement, changes structure, or creates force.
A sheet or fiber structure, said structure being without a straight line of material across a surface of the structure in any direction, wherein said structure is formed with two or more adjacent layers with different coefficients of expansion.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.