A Modular, Reconfigurable Mold for a Soft Robotic Gripper Design Activity
A Modular, Reconfigurable Mold for a Soft Robotic Gripper Design Activity
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用于软机器人夹具设计活动的模块化、可重构模具
DOI：
10.3389/frobt.2017.00046
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发表时间：
2017
期刊：
影响因子：
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通讯作者：
Rebecca K. Kramer
中科院分区：
文献类型：
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作者：
Jiawei Zhang;Andrew Jackson;N. Mentzer;Rebecca K. Kramer
软机器人是一个新兴的领域，由于其成本低和学习曲线浅等优点，具有很强的潜力作为教育工具。在本文中，我们介绍了一个模块化和可重构的模具柔性设计的气动软机器人夹具。通过使用简单的组装工具包，各级学生都能够设计和构建不同功能和性能的软机器人夹具。构建模块化模具的过程使学生能够了解设计选择如何影响系统性能。我们独特的模块化模具允许学生选择夹具中手指的数量和长度，以及调整气动致动器腔体的内部几何形状，这决定了手指弯曲的方式和位置。此外，模具可以被解构和重新配置，这允许快速迭代设计并降低材料成本（因为不需要制造新模具来实现设计变更）。我们进一步证明了模块化模具的可行性，通过在教室中的软机器人设计活动中实施它，并显示出足够高的学生成功率，在设计和构建一个功能软机器人夹具。
Soft robotics is an emerging field with strong potential to serve as an educational tool due to its advantages such as low costs and shallow learning curves. In this paper, we introduce a modular and reconfigurable mold for flexible design of pneumatic soft robotic grippers. By using simple assembly kits, students at all levels are able to design and construct soft robotic grippers that vary in function and performance. The process of constructing the modular mold enables students to understand how design choices impact system performance. Our unique modular mold allows students to select the number and length of fingers in a gripper, as well as to adjust the internal geometry of the pneumatic actuator cavity, which dictates how and where bending of a finger occurs. In addition, the mold may be deconstructed and reconfigured, which allows for fast iterative design and lowers material costs (since a new mold does not need to be made to implement a design change). We further demonstrate the feasibility of the modular mold by implementing it in a soft robot design activity in classrooms and showing a sufficiently high rate of student success in designing and constructing a functional soft robotic gripper.