**Preface XI Section 1 Design, Fabrication and Simulation 1** Chapter 1 **Dielectric Barrier Discharge Microplasma Actuator for Flow Control 3** Kazuo Shimizu and Marius Blajan Chapter 2 **An SU-8 Microgripper Based on the Cascaded V-Shaped Electrothermal Actuators: Design, Fabrication, Simulation and Experimental Investigations 25** Rodica-Cristina Voicu Chapter 3 **Ionic Polymer Actuators: Principle, Fabrication and Applications 39** Yanjie Wang and Takushi Sugino Chapter 4 **Development of Resonators with Reversible Magnetostrictive Effect for Applications as Actuators and Energy Harvesters 57** Jerzy Kaleta, Rafał Mech and Przemysław Wiewiórski **Section 2 Control Systems 83** Chapter 5 **Modeling, System Identification, and Control of Electromagnetic Actuators 85** Alexandru Forrai **Section 3 Medical Applications 107**

Chapter 6 **Quantitative Tactile Examination Using Shape Memory Alloy Actuators for the Early Detection of Diabetic Neuropathy 109** Junichi Danjo, Sonoko Danjo, Hideyuki Sawada, Keiji Uchida and Yu Nakamura

#### **Section 4 Fault Detection 129**

Chapter 7 **Root Cause Analysis of Actuator Fault 131** Mei Zhang, Ze-tao Li, Boutaib Dahhou and Michel Cabassud

Preface

memory alloy actuators.

implementation, and their applications.

tions of Actuators," and "Fault Detection of Actuators."

in fuel injection systems and in variable valve timing.

shaped memory alloy wire as the actuator.

out of more than double the number of publication proposals.

The book promotes new research results in the field of modern actuators and their applica‐ tions. In the last years, a huge variety of ideas and results have been published in journals and conferences. Some of them have been developed for industrial production. Smart mate‐ rials and microtechnologies stay as the base of the new actuators and their applications. The book comprehends new coverage of dielectric barrier discharge plasma actuators, polymeric microgripper based on the cascaded V-shaped electrothermal actuators, ionic polymer ac‐ tuators, wideband actuators and energy harvesters, electromagnetic actuators, and shape

The authors have published worked examples and case studies as a result from their re‐ searches in the field. The readers get new solutions and answers to questions related to the emerging actuation principles, fabrication, modeling, simulation, control, fault detection,

In a brief description, the book has four sections: "Design, Fabrication and Simulation of Actuators," "Modeling, System Identification, and Control of Actuators," "Medical Applica‐

The book presents in seven chapters cases that illustrate the research results in the above domains. The chapters were edited and published following a rigorous selection process,

The first section includes the following chapters: a study carried out to investigate experi‐ mentally and by numerical simulations a microscale plasma actuator; the design, fabrica‐ tion, numerical simulations, and experimental investigations of a polymeric microgripper designed using the cascaded V-shaped electrothermal actuators; a review of the develop‐ ment of ionic polymer actuator with introduction of two kinds of typical polymer actuators —ionic polymer-metal composites and bucky gel actuator—with their basic principle; and fabrication process and typical applications and a methodology of designing and testing wi‐ deband actuators and energy harvesters, treated as one mechanical resonator, with a discus‐

The second section is dedicated to a chapter on modeling, system identification and control of electromagnetic actuators, with main focus on the actuators used in magnetic levitation,

The third section presents a study focused on quantifying the decline in tactile sensation associated with diabetic neuropathy, and developed a measurement device that used a thin-

sion on shock harvester, resonant harvester and energy transmission system.
