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Actuators
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Soft Actuators for Soft Robotics
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Soft Actuators for Soft Robotics

A special issue of Actuators (ISSN 2076-0825). This special issue belongs to the section "Actuators for Robotics".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 December 2023) | Viewed by 5291

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Rassoul Tabassian

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Mechanical and Production Engineering, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
Interests: soft mechatronics; soft sensors and actuators; smart material and structures; nano-material

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Nature has always been the most important source of inspiration for human to come with his newest idea. During our industrialization and later in the digital age, we have been trying to decrease our physical workload by designing machines and robots that are able to accomplish some of our tasks. Especially in the last decades, invention of humanoid robots and other nature-inspired robots has accelerated. However, despite large investment, the mechanical features of our robots have been falling behind other aspects like electronics or artificial intelligence. It took a bit long until we figured it out that the missing link in our robot designs is the compliance. Although many robots are designed to mimic some functions in nature, most of them forgot to include a feature which is common in almost all natural creatures, and it is nothing but the SOFTNESS. Therefore, recently Soft Robotics has emerged to make compliant robots capable of doing more delicate tasks, moving in more complex environments, and handling objects with irregular shapes. The key component to make such robots is the Soft Actuator. Although a variety of soft actuators have been invented this field is still young and encounters plenty of fundamental challenges.

Accordingly, this special issue will focus on the recent advancements in the field of soft actuators for implementation in soft robotics. Hereby we invite you to share your latest findings by submitting high-quality manuscripts that address the following challenges in the field:

-Fabrication
-Energy Efficiency
-Output Power
-Control
-Reliability
-Theoretical Modeling

Dr. Rassoul Tabassian
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Actuators is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

28 pages, 18100 KiB  
Article
Design, Manufacturing, and Open-Loop Control of a Soft Pneumatic Arm
by Jorge Francisco García-Samartín, Adrián Rieker and Antonio Barrientos
Actuators 2024, 13(1), 36; https://doi.org/10.3390/act13010036 - 17 Jan 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1826
Abstract
Soft robots distinguish themselves from traditional robots by embracing flexible kinematics. Because of their recent emergence, there exist numerous uncharted territories, including novel actuators, manufacturing processes, and advanced control methods. This research is centred on the design, fabrication, and control of a pneumatic [...] Read more.
Soft robots distinguish themselves from traditional robots by embracing flexible kinematics. Because of their recent emergence, there exist numerous uncharted territories, including novel actuators, manufacturing processes, and advanced control methods. This research is centred on the design, fabrication, and control of a pneumatic soft robot. The principal objective is to develop a modular soft robot featuring multiple segments, each one with three degrees of freedom. This yields a tubular structure with five independent degrees of freedom, enabling motion across three spatial dimensions. Physical construction leverages tin-cured silicone and a wax-casting method, refined through an iterative processes. PLA moulds that are 3D-printed and filled with silicone yield the desired model, while bladder-like structures are formed within using solidified paraffin wax-positive moulds. For control, an empirically fine-tuned open-loop system is adopted. This paper culminates in rigorous testing. Finally, the bending ability, weight-carrying capacity, and possible applications are discussed. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Soft Actuators for Soft Robotics)
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15 pages, 2331 KiB  
Article
Cosserat Rod-Based Dynamic Modeling of a Hybrid-Actuated Soft Robot for Robot-Assisted Cardiac Ablation
by Majid Roshanfar, Javad Dargahi and Amir Hooshiar
Actuators 2024, 13(1), 8; https://doi.org/10.3390/act13010008 - 23 Dec 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1570
Abstract
Soft robotics has emerged as a promising field due to the unique characteristics offered by compliant and flexible structures. Overcoming the challenge of precise position control is crucial in the development of such systems that require accurate modeling of soft robots. In response, [...] Read more.
Soft robotics has emerged as a promising field due to the unique characteristics offered by compliant and flexible structures. Overcoming the challenge of precise position control is crucial in the development of such systems that require accurate modeling of soft robots. In response, a hybrid-actuated soft robot employing both air pressure and tendons was proposed, modeled, and validated using the dynamic Cosserat rod theory. This approach comprehensively addresses various aspects of deformation, including bending, torsion, shear, and extension. The designed robot was intended for robot-assisted cardiac ablation, a minimally invasive procedure that is used to treat cardiac arrhythmias. Within the framework of the Cosserat model, dynamic equations were discretized over time, and ordinary differential equations (ODEs) were solved at each time step. These equations of motion facilitated the prediction of the robot’s response to different control inputs, such as the air pressure and tension applied to the tendons. Experimental studies were conducted on a physical prototype to examine the accuracy of the model. The experiments covered a tension range of 0 to 3 N for each tendon and an air pressure range of 0 to 40 kPa for the central chamber. The results confirmed the accuracy of the model, demonstrating that the dynamic equations successfully predicted the robot’s motion in response to diverse control inputs. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Soft Actuators for Soft Robotics)
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15 pages, 17139 KiB  
Article
Design and Experimental Study of Cavity Structure of Pneumatic Soft Actuator
by Yang Yu and Tao Fu
Actuators 2023, 12(8), 314; https://doi.org/10.3390/act12080314 - 4 Aug 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1357
Abstract
In order to study the influence of the cavity inclination angle bending performance of pneumatic soft actuators, two kinds of soft actuators were designed, one with a five-degree-angle cavity structure, and the other with a hybrid variable-degree-angle cavity structure. The bending performance of [...] Read more.
In order to study the influence of the cavity inclination angle bending performance of pneumatic soft actuators, two kinds of soft actuators were designed, one with a five-degree-angle cavity structure, and the other with a hybrid variable-degree-angle cavity structure. The bending performance of zero-degree-angle, five-degree-angle, and hybrid variable-degree-angle soft actuators was investigated by experimental methods and the ABAQUS finite element simulation method. The results show that, under seven different pressure loads, the mean absolute error between the experimental results and the numerical simulation results for the zero-degree-angle soft actuator was 0.926, for the five-degree-angle soft actuator it was 1.472, and for the hybrid variable-degree-angle soft actuator it was 1.22. When the pressure load changed from 4 kPa to 16 kPa, the five-degree-angle soft actuator had the largest range-of-angle variation, with the bending angle increasing 193.31%, from 26.92 degrees to 78.97 degrees. In the same longitudinal displacement, the five-degree-angle soft actuator had the largest lateral displacement variation, and the bending effect was the best compared with the zero-degree-angle soft actuator and the hybrid variable-degree-angle soft actuator. According to the experimental and numerical simulation results, with the same structural parameter design, the cavity tilt angle increases, which can increase the bending angle variation range and improve the bending performance of soft actuators. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Soft Actuators for Soft Robotics)
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