JPH0332786Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed description of the invention] (Field of industrial application) The present invention is an actuator using a shape memory material, and more specifically, a plate-shaped body formed of a shape memory material is joined by surface contact. The present invention relates to an actuator using a shape memory material, which has a good heat exchange rate by being cooled and heated by a semiconductor heat exchanger, and has a small size and simple structure.

(Prior art) Keeping in mind the original shape, by the following transformation,
The phenomenon of maintaining a different shape and restoring it to its original shape when necessary is called the shape memory effect, and materials that exhibit this shape memory effect are called shape memory materials. Various actuators using such shape memory materials have been proposed.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a conventional example of an actuator using a shape memory material.

In FIG. 4, 7 is a spring, 8 is a semiconductor heat exchanger, and 9 is a load.

Spring 7 is a coil spring made of shape memory material. This spring 7 has been subjected to memory heat treatment in a pre-shrinked state (FIG. 4a). In this state, a load 9 is connected to the spring 7 to apply deformation (FIG. 4b). After this, in the semiconductor heat exchanger 8, the spring 7
When heated, it returns to its original memorized shape (Figure 4c).

FIG. 5 is a diagram for explaining the principle of a semiconductor heat exchanger.

The semiconductor heat exchanger 8 has a structure in which an N-type semiconductor 80 and a P-type semiconductor 81 are connected by copper plates 82 and 83, respectively, and has a cooling/heating effect based on the Peltier effect. Here, the Peltier effect refers to the effect that when two types of materials are bonded and a current is passed in one direction, heat is generated or absorbed at the bonded surface.

(Problems to be solved by the invention) In this way, the conventional actuator using shape memory material is formed by molding the shape memory material into a spring shape.
In many cases, the shape memory material and the semiconductor heat exchanger exhibiting the Peltier effect were simply arranged in series. For this reason, although the amount of displacement is large, on the other hand, the heat exchange area is small, so the speed is slow and the efficiency is low, and it is not possible to control the temperature at all. Further, with the above-mentioned structure, there still remain problems such as the overall size of the device and the complicated structure.

An object of the present invention is to provide an actuator using a shape memory material that has good heat exchange efficiency with the shape memory material, has a small and simple structure, and can sandwich an object between the actuators.

(Means for solving the problem) In order to achieve the above object, an actuator using a shape memory material according to the present invention is deformed from a first shape to a second shape, and is heated. A first plate-like body made of a plate-shaped shape memory material that returns to the first shape, and when the first plate state is not heated, the first plate-like body is returned to the second shape. a second plate-shaped body that acts to return the shape from the shape to the first shape, and is joined to the first and second plate-shaped bodies by surface contact, respectively;
The first and second plate-shaped bodies and the semiconductor heat exchanger are arranged in concentric circles with a part of the circumference cut off. , is configured to sandwich the object between the cut surfaces.

(Example) The present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings and the like.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the principle of an actuator using a shape memory material according to the present invention, in which FIG. 1a is a plan view and FIG. 1b is a partially cutaway perspective view.

The plate-like body 1 is formed into a plate shape using a shape memory material. For example, a titanium-nickel alloy is used as the shape memory material.
This plate-like body 1 is provided with a semiconductor heat exchanger 3,
A plate-like body 2 is attached integrally. In this embodiment, the plate-like body 2 is made of an elastic material. The plate-like body 1 is given a curved shape in advance, and is transformed into a straight state by the plate-like body 2. Since this plate-like body 1 is made of a shape-memory material, it has the property of returning to its original curved shape when heated. The temperature at which this deformation is restored can be freely set within a certain range, but in this embodiment it is set at about 80° C. in order to ensure reliable operation in relation to the temperature of the atmosphere at the place of use.

The semiconductor heat exchanger 3 is used to efficiently cool and heat the plate-like body 1 by the Peltier effect. The semiconductor heat exchanger 3 includes an N-type semiconductor 30, a P-type semiconductor 31, and conductive plates 32, 33, 3.
4, an insulating plate 35, and lead wires 36, 37.

A conductive plate 32 is bonded to the N-type semiconductor 30, and a conductive plate 33 is bonded to the P-type semiconductor 31. The N-type semiconductor 30 and the P-type semiconductor 31 to which the conductive plates 32 and 33 are bonded, respectively, are bonded through the insulating plate 35 in the thickness direction. Conductive plate 3
2 is connected to a lead wire 36, and the conductive plate 33 is connected to a lead wire 37, respectively. N-type semiconductor 3
0, on the opposite side of the P-type semiconductor 31, there is a conductive plate 3
4 and are electrically connected. This semiconductor heat exchanger 3 has a plate-like body 1 on the side of the conductive plate 34 and a plate-like body 2 on the opposite side.

Next, the overall operation of FIG. 1 will be explained with reference to FIG. 2.

FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining the operation of the semiconductor heat exchanger of FIG. 1.

As shown in FIG. 2a, when the lead wire 36 is connected to the positive side and the lead wire 37 is connected to the negative side, due to the Peltier effect, the side of the conductive plate 34 connecting the N-type semiconductor 30 and the P-type semiconductor 31 is cooled, and the opposite side is cooled. The side gets hot. While the conductive plate 34 side is being cooled, the plate-like body 1 is being cooled and therefore maintains a straight state.

Now, as shown in FIG. 2b, when the lead wire 36 is switched to the minus side and the lead wire 37 is switched to the plus side, the conductive plate 34 side generates heat and the opposite side is cooled. Therefore, the plate-shaped body 1 is heated and returns to its original curved shape, and the entire actuator is curved.

Furthermore, set the lead wire 36 to the positive side, and set the lead wire 36 to the positive side.
When 7 is switched to the negative side, the actuator returns to its straight state due to the elasticity of the plate-like body 2.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an embodiment of an actuator using a shape memory material according to the present invention, in which FIG.
Figure b shows the actuator in its closed state.

Note that parts having the same functions as those in FIG. 1 described above are given the same reference numerals.

In this embodiment, a plate-shaped body 1, a plate-shaped body 2, and a semiconductor heat exchanger 2 are arranged concentrically, a part of the circumference is cut, rubber 4 is provided on the cut end face, and a holder 5 The entire actuator is held in place.

First, as shown in FIG. 3a, when the lead wire 36 is connected to the negative side and the lead wire 37 is connected to the positive side, the semiconductor heat exchanger 3 generates heat on the outside and cools on the inside. For this reason, the plate-like body 1 is heated and returns to its original memorized shape, and the hand is opened.

Next, as shown in FIG. 3b, the lead wire 36
When the lead wire 37 is switched to the positive side and the lead wire 37 is switched to the negative side, the inside of the semiconductor heat exchanger 3 generates heat and the outside is cooled. Therefore, the plate-like body 1 is
The elasticity of the hand deforms the hand in the closing direction, and the object 6 can be held via the rubber 4, 4.

(Modification) Since the plate-like body 2 only has to function to return the plate-like body 1 to its straight state when it is not heated, it can also be formed from a shape memory material.
In this case, the plate-shaped body 2 and the plate-shaped body 1 are joined so that the direction of curvature is opposite to that of the plate-shaped body 1, and the semiconductor heat exchanger 3
Cooling and heating may be performed alternately. With this configuration, when the plate-like body 1 is heated to return to its original shape, the plate-like body 2 is cooled and becomes softer, so it has less resistance (internal stress) than a general elastic body.
becomes small, and a large amount of displacement and large force can be generated.

Moreover, by coating the plate-like bodies 1 and 2 and the semiconductor heat exchanger 3 with an extremely thin film, troubles such as rust and separation can be prevented.

(Effects of the invention) As explained in detail above, the present invention adopts a plate shape as the shape memory material, and connects it to another elastic member or a plate made of the shape memory material with a semiconductor heat exchanger in between. These plate-shaped bodies and the semiconductor heat exchanger are arranged in a concentric circle, a part of the circumference is cut, and an object is held between the cut surfaces.

Therefore, the efficiency of heat exchange between the two members is good, and it is possible to provide a hand that is small and has a simple structure as an actuator.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the principle of an actuator using a shape memory material according to the present invention, in which FIG. 1a is a plan view and FIG. 1b is a partially cutaway perspective view. FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining the operation of the semiconductor heat exchanger of FIG. 1. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an embodiment of an actuator using a shape memory material according to the present invention, in which FIG. 3a shows the actuator in an open state, and FIG. 3b shows the actuator in a closed state. It is a diagram. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a conventional example of an actuator using a shape memory material. FIG. 5 is a diagram for explaining the principle of a semiconductor heat exchanger. 1, 2... Plate body, 3... Semiconductor heat exchanger, 3
0...N-type semiconductor, 31...P-type semiconductor, 32,
33, 34... Conductive plate, 35... Insulating plate, 36,
37...Lead wire, 4...Rubber, 5...Holder.

Claims (1)

[Claims for Utility Model Registration] (1) A first device made of a plate-shaped shape memory material that is deformed from a first shape to a second shape and returns to the first shape by heating. a plate-like body, and a second plate-like body that acts to return the first plate-like body from the second shape to the first shape when the first plate-like body is not heated.
and a semiconductor heat exchanger which is joined to the first and second plate-shaped bodies by surface contact and which performs cooling and heat generation functions by the Peltier effect, and the first and second plate-shaped bodies The shape memory material is characterized in that the body and the semiconductor heat exchanger are arranged concentrically with a part of the circumference cut off, and the object is held between the cut surfaces. Actuator using. (2) The second plate-like body is a shape memory material that has been deformed in advance in a direction opposite to that of the first plate-like body, and the second plate-like body is a shape-memory material that has been deformed in advance in a direction opposite to that of the first plate-like body, and is An actuator using a shape memory material according to claim 1, which is alternately cooled and heated.