Patent ID: 7895917

Claim:
A conformal grasp handle alternatively achieving first and second permanent and memorized geometric shapes, comprising: a flexible covering; a rigid core member; an active material intermediate the core member and the flexible covering, and operable to autonomously undergo a reversible change in shape as a result of being exposed to an activation signal, wherein the material comprises a shape memory polymer, a shape memory alloy, a ferromagnetic shape memory alloy, an electroactive polymer, or a combination comprising at least one of the foregoing active materials; and an activation device operable to generate the signal, and in operative communication with the active material, so as to be able to selectively cause the material to be exposed to the signal, said material and device being cooperatively configured to cause the handle to reversibly toggle between the shapes, solely as a result of the change, wherein the conformal grasp handle forms an outer gripping surface of a selected one or both of a steering wheel and a shift knob.