Shoko Yoshikawa

Title: Shoko Yoshikawa: Innovator in Modular Actuator Technology

Introduction

Shoko Yoshikawa is a prominent inventor based in Cambridge, MA (US). She has made significant contributions to the field of modular actuator technology, holding 2 patents that showcase her innovative approach to engineering.

Latest Patents

One of her latest patents is the Packaged Strain Actuator. This modular actuator assembly includes one or more plates or elements of electro-active material bonded to an electroded sheet, preferably by a structural polymer to form a card. The card is sealed and can serve as a practical device, such as a vane, shaker, stirrer, lever, pusher, or sonicator for direct contact with a solid or immersion in a fluid. It may also be bonded by a stiff adhesive to create a surface-to-surface mechanical coupling with a solid workpiece, device, substrate machine, or sample. The structural polymer provides bending stiffness, ensuring that the thin plate does not deform to its breaking point, while also offering mechanical stiffness that efficiently couples shear forces from the plate to the workpiece. In further embodiments, the card may include active circuit elements for switching, powering, or processing signals, and/or passive circuit elements for filtering, matching, or damping signals, minimizing the need for connections to outside circuitry. The actuator assembly can be manufactured in quantity, providing a versatile actuator with uniform mechanical and actuation characteristics that introduces negligible mass loading to the workpiece. The cards themselves may be arranged as independent mechanical actuators, rather than strain-transfer actuators, where the induced strain changes the position of the card. Various arrangements of pinned or cantilevered cards may act as a pusher, bender, or other motive actuator, and structures such as powered bellows may be formed directly by folding one or more suitably patterned cards.

Career Highlights

Throughout her career, Shoko has worked with notable companies such as Active Control Experts, Inc. and Cymer, Inc. Her work has significantly impacted the development of advanced actuator technologies.

Collaborations

Shoko has collaborated with esteemed colleagues, including Kenneth B. Lazarus and Mark E. Lundstrom, contributing to her innovative projects and research.

Conclusion

Shoko Yoshikawa is a trailblazer in the field of modular actuator technology, with her patents reflecting her commitment to innovation