Fig. 5: EA technology is integrated into both clutches and grippers.

a The schematic illustrates a flexible clutch mechanism with an enhanced dielectric constant and its application for limiting joint rotation. Reproduced under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0)¹³⁹. Copyright 2024 The Authors. Advanced Materials Technologies published by Wiley-VCH GmbH. Reproduced with permission⁸⁴. Copyright 2018 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim. b An origami-structured clutch-based gripper with high bending stiffness. Reproduced with permission¹⁴⁰. Copyright 2023 IEEE. c A soft EA gripper integrated with a dielectric elastomer actuator (DEA) in a single structure. Reproduced with permission¹⁴. Copyright 2015 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim. d EA patches combined with shape-adaptive soft robotic grippers to enhance grasping ability. Reproduced with permission⁵⁹. Copyright 2019 Mary Ann Liebert, Inc. e The combination of pneumatic actuators with EA achieves a gripper with high grasping ability. Reproduced under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License (CC BY 3.0)¹⁵. Copyright 2018 IOP Publishing Ltd. f A hybrid structure combining gecko-like adhesive with EA enhances the adhesive capabilities on both smooth and rough surfaces. Reproduced with permission³⁷. Copyright 2014 Royal Society. g The microgripper, based on electrowetting, changes the contact angle of a water droplet to lift micro objects. Reproduced with permission⁹⁰. Copyright 2009 IEEE.