I-Corps: Elastomeric Passive Transmission for Dynamic Adjustment of Mechanical Advantage

这个i-Corps项目的更广泛的影响/商业潜力是基于一种被动地调整电动执行器的机械优势的装置。这种设备被称为弹性被动传动(EPT)，可以提高肌腱驱动驱动系统的力和速度，而对其尺寸、重量和成本的影响微乎其微。在美国，每年大约有4万人遭受严重的上肢丧失之苦。即使是这些患者使用的最先进的假手，与人类的手相比，其握力、握持速度和主动自由度也相形见绌。用户研究表明，90%的肌电假体患者认为他们的假手太慢，79%的患者认为假手太重。通过将EPT融入他们的设计中，假肢制造商可以在降低成本和重量的情况下提高设备的力和速度。除了改进假肢的性能外，EPT还有可能为机器人自动化领域的夹持器和机械手带来性能优势。这个i-Corps项目利用加法制造方面的进步来生产简单、低成本的部件，以提高机电系统的性能。每个EPT都是由硬质和软质聚亚安酯组成的复合材料。硬质聚亚安酯作为EPT的核心，确保它不会在电机轴上打滑。这个核心被一圈柔软的、可伸展的支柱所包围，这给了系统动态的假脱机半径。EPTs分成两部分进行3D打印，并在最终固化阶段粘合在一起。这导致了一种单部件传动系统，它可以被动地感知环境并调整电机的输出，以提高性能和控制。EPTS的好处已经通过集成到3D打印假手中得到了证明，这种假手在廉价和轻便的包装中展示了高速和高力。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The broader impact/commercial potential of this I-Corps project is based on a device which passively adjusts the mechanical advantage of a motor-driven actuator. This device, known as the Elastomeric Passive Transmission (EPT), improves the force and speed of tendon-driven actuation systems with minimal impact to their size, weight, and cost. Approximately 40,000 people per year suffer from major upper limb loss in the United States. The grip strength, grasping speed, and active degrees-of-freedom of even the most advanced prosthetic hands used by these patients pale in comparison to those of a human hand. User studies have shown that 90% of patients with myoelectric prostheses consider their prosthetic hand to be too slow and 79% consider it to be too heavy. By incorporating the EPT into their designs, prosthetic limb manufacturers can increase the force and speed of their devices with reduced cost and weight. In addition to improving the performance of prosthetics, the EPT has the potential to bring performance benefits to grippers and manipulators in the field of robotic automation.This I-Corps project is leverages advances in additive manufacturing to produce simple, low-cost components to improve the performance of electromechanical systems. Each EPT is a composite consisting of both hard and soft polyurethane sections. The hard polyurethane serves as the core of the EPT ensuring that it does not slip on the motor shaft. This core is surrounded by a ring of soft, stretchable struts which give the system its dynamic spooling radius. The EPTs are 3D-printed in two parts and bonded together during the final curing stage. This leads to a single component transmission system which can passively sense the environment and adjust the output of a motor to improve performance and control. The benefits of EPTs have been demonstrated through integration into a 3D-printed prosthetic hand which demonstrates high speed and high force in an inexpensive and lightweight package.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.