Patent ID: 7446949

Claim:
A driving mechanism comprising: an electro-mechanical conversion element comprising: an elongating and contracting portion that elongates and contracts; and a dummy layer that does not contribute to elongation and contraction of the electro-mechanical conversion element, in which one end of the dummy layer is attached to one end, in elongating and contracting direction, of the elongating and contracting portion, and said dummy layer is supported for movement in the elongating and contracting direction; a driving friction member directly or indirectly attached to the other end of the elongating and contracting portion of the electro-mechanical conversion element; and a driven member frictionally engaged with the driving friction member, wherein a center of gravity of the entire electro-mechanical conversion element is not made coincident with a geometric center of the elongating and contracting portion in the elongating and contracting direction, wherein the center of gravity of the entire electro-mechanical element is positioned at the dummy layer side further away from the geometric center of the elongating and contracting portion in the elongating and contracting direction.