Laser-assisted failure recovery for dielectric elastomer actuators in aerial robots
Laser-assisted failure recovery for dielectric elastomer actuators in aerial robots
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DOI：
10.1126/scirobotics.adf4278
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发表时间：
2023-03
期刊：
影响因子：
25
通讯作者：
Suhan Kim;Y. Hsiao;Younghoon Lee;Weikun Zhu;Zhijian Ren;F. Niroui;Yufeng Chen
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Suhan Kim;Y. Hsiao;Younghoon Lee;Weikun Zhu;Zhijian Ren;F. Niroui;Yufeng Chen
昆虫在遭受严重的伤害或创伤后仍能保持非凡的敏捷性。虽然由刚性驱动器驱动的机器人已经表现出敏捷的运动和操纵，但它们中的大多数缺乏对意外损伤的动物般的鲁棒性。介电弹性体致动器（DEAs）是一类肌肉样的软换能器，使灵活的空中，陆地和水上机器人运动的刚性致动器相比。然而，与肌肉不同，DEA遭受局部介电击穿，这通常会导致全局设备故障。这些局部缺陷严重限制了DEA的性能、生命周期和大小可扩展性。我们开发的DEA可以承受超过100次穿刺，同时保持高带宽（>400赫兹）和功率密度（>700瓦/千克）-足以支持能量昂贵的运动，如飞行。我们制作了电致发光DEA可视化电极连接致动器损坏。当DEA遭受严重的介电击穿，导致设备故障，我们展示了一种激光辅助修复方法隔离的关键缺陷和恢复性能。这些结果最终在空中机器人，可以忍受关键的致动器和机翼损坏，同时保持类似的精度在悬停飞行。我们的工作突出表明，软机器人系统可以体现动物般的敏捷性和顺从性，这是未来机器人与具有挑战性的环境互动的关键仿生能力。说明激光烧蚀和自清除恢复严重损坏的软致动器，恢复仿生空中机器人的飞行。
Insects maintain remarkable agility after incurring severe injuries or wounds. Although robots driven by rigid actuators have demonstrated agile locomotion and manipulation, most of them lack animal-like robustness against unexpected damage. Dielectric elastomer actuators (DEAs) are a class of muscle-like soft transducers that have enabled nimble aerial, terrestrial, and aquatic robotic locomotion comparable to that of rigid actuators. However, unlike muscles, DEAs suffer local dielectric breakdowns that often cause global device failure. These local defects severely limit DEA performance, lifetime, and size scalability. We developed DEAs that can endure more than 100 punctures while maintaining high bandwidth (>400 hertz) and power density (>700 watt per kilogram)—sufficient for supporting energetically expensive locomotion such as flight. We fabricated electroluminescent DEAs for visualizing electrode connectivity under actuator damage. When the DEA suffered severe dielectric breakdowns that caused device failure, we demonstrated a laser-assisted repair method for isolating the critical defects and recovering performance. These results culminate in an aerial robot that can endure critical actuator and wing damage while maintaining similar accuracy in hovering flight. Our work highlights that soft robotic systems can embody animal-like agility and resilience—a critical biomimetic capability for future robots to interact with challenging environments. Description Laser ablation and self-clearing recover severely damaged soft actuators, restoring flight in a biomimetic aerial robot.