Bill of Materials
Consumable Materials
Name | Quantity | Image | Purchase Link | (Notes) |
EcoFlex™ 00-50 Silicone | ~ 10 grams of silicone per actuator | 
| We recommend purchasing more silicone than is needed, as it allows for more iteration on the design. | |
Disposable Dixie Cups | Three (3) per actuator | 
| ||
Wooden Stirring Rods | One (1) per actuator | 
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Thin Cotton Craft Fabric | Two (2) rectangular 45" by 0.75" sheets per actuator | 
| Any relatively thin craft fabric will be sufficient | |
Disposable Pipettes | Two (2) per actuator |
| These pipettes will be used to either inject acetone into an actuator made with a polystyrene insert or to funnel hot water into an actuator made with a PVA insert. | |
1,000 mL beaker | One (1) | 
| PVA Insert Only Any size beaker will be sufficient, but make sure that your actuator will fit inside. | |
Polyvinyl Alcohol (PVA) Filament | ~2.2 grams per actuator | 
| PVA Insert Only Be sure to store this filament in a dry location before printing. PVA is hygroscopic, meaning that it can absorb moisture from the atmosphere, which will effect print quality. | |
Acetone (Nail Polish Remover) | ~ 20 mL per actuator | 
| Polystyrene Insert Only Any household nail polish remover will be sufficient. |
Scientific Tools / Instruments Used
Name | Quantity | Image | Purchase Link | (Notes) |
Craft Knife | One (1) | 
| Any craft knife (such as a small box cutter or X-ACTO knife) will be sufficient. | |
Electronic Balance / Scale | One (1) | 
| Use the balance to weigh the proper proportions of your silicone mixture | |
PrintrBot Simple 3D-Printer | One (1) | 
| Use a 3D printer to print out the provided Base and Insert molds. Our team used a PrintrBot, but any 3D-Printer with a large enough build volume will be sufficient | |
Hot Plate | One (1) | 
| PVA Insert Only You can use the hot plate to dissolve the PVA Inserts inside your actuators. Alternatively, if you do not have access to a hot plate, a standard kitchen stove works just as well. |
Electronic and Pneumatic Componenets
See the Soft Robotics Toolkit for more information regarding the Fluidic Control Board
Name | Quantity | Image | Purchase Link | (Notes) |
Arduino Mega Development Board | One (1) | 
| Any Arduino Development board with a 5V Output and PWM ports will be sufficient | |
Power Supply | Three (3) | 
| Any power supply capable of supplying up to 12 Volts is sufficient. Ours have a current output of 2A, but you can customize your control board with whatever you have available. | |
MOSFET 4 v04 | One (1) | 
| ||
Solenoid Valve | Four (4) | 
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Pressure Splitter Manifold | One (1) | 
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Voltage Monitor | Two (2) | 
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Power Switch | One (1) | 
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LCD Debugging Screen | One (1) | 
| Use this screen alongside our provided code for debugging and menu selection. | |
Breadboard Jumper Wires | ~50 |
| Depending on the setup of your breadboard, you may need mores or fewer jumper wires. | |
Small Breadboard | Three (3) | 
| The breadboard setup can be customized to the student's preference, but we used small breadboards such as this one. | |
Pressure Sensor | One (1) | 
| Use this sensor to create a glove that can record pressure data when throwing a pot | |
Pressure Regulator | Two (2) | 
| ||
Polyester Glove | One (1) | 
| Use this in the process of creating the pressure sensing glove | |
⅛” Outer Diameter Pneumatic Tubing | ~1 meter used throughout the control board | 
| Use this tubing at your own discretion. Keep in mind that increasing the length of the tube between the pump and the actuator may cause inconsistencies with the pressure outputted. |
For a list of necessary materials in spreadsheet format, please see this link.
