A Collapsible Soft Actuator Facilitates Performance in Constrained Environments

Overview

Journal Adv Intell Syst

Specialty Biomedical Engineering

Date 2023 Jul 14

PMID 37449010

Authors

Jacob Rogatinsky

Kiran Gomatam

Zi Heng Lim

Megan Lee

Lorenzo Kinnicutt

Christian Duriez

Perry Thomson

Kevin McDonald

Tommaso Ranzani

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Complex environments, such as those found in surgical and search-and-rescue applications, require soft devices to adapt to minimal space conditions without sacrificing the ability to complete dexterous tasks. Stacked Balloon Actuators (SBAs) are capable of large deformations despite folding nearly flat when deflated, making them ideal candidates for such applications. This paper presents the design, fabrication, modeling, and characterization of monolithic, inflatable, soft SBAs. Modeling is presented using analytical principles based on geometry, and then using conventional and real-time finite element methods. Both one and three degree-of-freedom (DoF) SBAs are fully characterized with regards to stroke, force, and workspace. Finally, three representative demonstrations show the SBA's small-aperture navigation, bracing, and workspace-enhancing capabilities.

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