Emerging Actuator Technologies

Actuators are devices that convert electrical energy into mechanical work, traditionally used in electrical, pneumatic and hydraulic systems. As the demand for actuator technologies grows in biomedical, prosthetic and orthotic applications, there is an increasing need for complex and sophisticated products that perform efficiently also when scaled to micro and nano domains. Providing a comprehensive overview of actuators for novel applications, this excellent book: * Presents a mechatronic approach to the design, control and integration of a range of technologies covering piezoelectric actuators, shape memory actuators, electro-active polymers, magnetostrictive actuators …