Design and Characterisation of a Muscle-Mimetic Dielectrophoretic Ratcheting Actuator
Design and Characterisation of a Muscle-Mimetic Dielectrophoretic Ratcheting Actuator
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DOI：
10.1109/lra.2022.3149039
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发表时间：
2022-04-01
影响因子：
5.2
通讯作者：
Rossiter, Jonathan
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Garrad, Martin;Zadeh, Mohammad Naghavi;Rossiter, Jonathan
由于缺乏结合高力、高工作和高功率能力的执行器，软机器人技术的巨大潜在影响受到阻碍，限制了其在现实世界问题中的应用。通常，软执行器通过传动装置调整到应用 - 例如，用功率换取应变。最近开发的利用这种传动装置的软致动器的一个例子是介电泳液体拉链（DLZ）致动器。 DLZ 可以产生与生物肌肉相当的大应变 (>99%) 和功率密度，但无法在单个执行器中同时实现这两个目标。在这项工作中，我们引入了一种模拟肌肉 DLZ 棘轮执行器 (DLZ-R)，它允许多个 DLZ-R 头并行操作，从而在不牺牲行程或功率的情况下增加力输出。我们首先描述几何形状对 1 头 DLZ-R 性能的影响，然后证明 DLZ-R 的力、功和功率输出与活动 DLZ 头的数量呈线性关系。接下来，我们研究驱动频率和功率输出之间的关系。最后，我们演示了一个 12 头 DLZ 棘轮。我们相信 DLZ-R 代表着向能够提供高工作量和高功率以及软技术广泛使用的软执行器迈出了一步。
The high potential impact of soft robotics is hampered by a lack of actuators that combine high-force, high-work and high-power capabilities, limiting application in real-world problems. Typically, soft actuators are tuned to an application by gearing - for example, trading power for strain. An example of a recently developed soft-actuator which exploits such gearing is the dielectrophoretic liquid zipping (DLZ) actuator. DLZs can produce large strains (>99%) and power densities comparable to biological muscles, but cannot achieve both in a single actuator. In this work, we introduce a muscle-mimetic DLZ ratcheting actuator (DLZ-R) that allows multiple DLZ-R heads to operate in parallel, thereby increasing force output without sacrificing stroke or power. We first characterise the effect of geometry on the performance of a 1-head DLZ-R, before demonstrating that the force, work, and power output of the DLZ-R scale linearly with the number of active DLZ heads. Next, we investigate the relationship between driving frequency and power output. Finally, we demonstrate a 12-head DLZ ratchet. We believe the DLZ-R represents a step towards soft actuators that can provide both high-work and high-power and the widespread use of soft technologies.