Origami-inspired magnetic-driven soft actuators with programmable designs and multiple applications

Soft actuators are attracting increasing attention for their great potentials in transportation, exploration and clinical treatments, especially the magnetic-driven soft actuators powered by magnetic energy wirelessly. However, the further promotion of complicated three-dimensional magnetic-driven soft actuators with multiple applications is limited by the simple designs and limited locomotion. This paper introduces the work integrating the ancient origami craft and the magnetic-driven materials, which regulates the conversion from external magnetic energy into inner elastic energy of magnetic materials, broadening the designs and functions of magnetic-driven actuators. The results show that the origami method can program the directions of magnetic moments in the soft actuators and adjust the amplitudes of deformation, which lays the foundation for designing magnetic-driven actuators with complicated three-dimensional structures. Especially, a rolling robot that can contract its body up to 65% of the original length is fabricated by origami method, which possesses the impressive ability of obstacle surmounting. Furthermore, a new three-dimensional soft aperture which can be powered wirelessly by magnetic energy was demonstrated as a supplement of present wired aperture. The results show that the origami method of magnetic-driven soft actuators could broaden the designs of magnetic-driven actuators, which promotes the applications in environment detection, targeted drug transport, flexible optical elements and so on. [Display omitted] •Propose a fabricating method of origami soft actuators powered by magnetic energy.•Origami endows magnetic-driven soft actuators with new designs and functions.•Magnetic moments and Deformations of magnetic materials can be programmed.•The origami robot enables contraction of body for surmounting obstacles.•The three-dimensional aperture can be powered wirelessly by magnetic energy.