Development of Electro-Rheological-Fluid Actuators for Driving Artipicial Muscle

(1)提出了一种通过控制施加在电流变液上的电场强度来获得驱动人工肌肉的任意压力的新方法。该方法的特点在于，根据上下管中的剪应力变化，通过改变压力降，在中压口处产生所需的压力。从理论上推导了压力降、流量和剪切应力变化之间的关系，以及压力对电场作用的响应方程，并与实验结果进行了比较。脉冲型（数字）变化的电场以及线性（模拟）控制的应用表明，这两种方法产生必要的压力。实验证实，人工肌肉，如果安装在中间端口，可以顺利地驱动，即使在交流电压场的应用。此外，PO ...更多信息 当使用较少的电极时，检验了彼此独立地驱动手指的可能性，并且该方法被证明是实用的。(2)其次，改善了人造手指的缺陷。通过使用类似于人的指纹的线圈状传感器来为手指提供触觉。通过为手指配备类似于人骨的增强材料来增强刚度。一个原型的机器人手与四个手指已经制造和安装在工业关节型机器人。这些机器人手指的有效性在整个抓取动作的实验测试中得到了证实。(3)利用电流变液的电特性，研制了一种新型的泵，电流变液的表观粘度随电压的变化而变化。该泵由一对旋转的相对盘之间的简单流动通道组成;然而，可以供给包括相对大的分散颗粒并且具有大粘度的ER流体。介绍了该泵的原理、结构和理论分析方法。研究了泵的流量、压力等特性以及柱塞流区的变化规律。结果表明，该泵不仅可作为泵使用，而且可用于测量电场引起的剪切应力和粘度的物理量。少

(1) A new method has been devised for obtaining an arbitrary pressure for driving an artificial muscle by controlling the electric field intensity applied to the electro-rheological-fluid. The characteristic of this method lies in that the necessary pressure is generated at the intermediate pressure port by changing the perssure drops based on the shear stress changes in the upper and lower pipes. The relationships among the pressure drops, the flow rate and the shear stress changes, and the equations expressing the pressure response to the electric field application were theoretically derived and compared with the experimental results. The applications of the electric field of pulse-type (digital) variation as well as the linear (analog) control showed that both methods generate the necessary pressure. It was experimentally confirmed that the artificial muscle, if mounted at the middle port, can be driven smoothly even under the alternate voltage field application. Furthermore, the po … More ssibility of driving the fingers independently to each other was examined when the fewer electrodes were used, and this method was proved to be practically applicable.(2) In the next place, the defects of artificial fingers have been improved. The finger is provided with the tactile sense by using a coil-like sensor similar to human's fingerprints. The rigidity is enhanced by equipping the finger with a reinforcing material similar to that of human's bone. A prototype robot hand with four fingers has been manufactured and mounted on an industrial articulated robot. The effectiveness of these robot hand fingers was confirmed throughout the experimental tests of grasping action.(3) A new type of pump hs been developed which effectively uses the electric characteristics of electro-rheological-fluids whose apparent viscosities are changed by the application of voltage. This pump is consisted of the simple flow passage between a pair of rotating opposed disks ; however, can feed the ER-fluids which comprise relatively large dispersed particles and have large viscosities. The principle and configuration of this pump and t;he method of theoretical analysis are described. The pump characteristics such as flow rate, pressure, and the variation of plug-type flow region are examined. It is indicated that this pump is effective not only for the use as a pump but also for the measurements of physical values of the shear stress induced by electric field and the viscosity. Less