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We propose a unique soft actuator—a paper actuator—based on carbon-nanotube-composite paper (CNT-composite paper), which is a composite of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and paper. CNT-composite paper has highly efficient properties because of the contained CNTs, such as high electrical conductivity and semiconducting properties. We are considering using CNT-composite paper for various devices. In this study, we successfully developed a paper actuator. We determined the structure of the paper actuator by referencing that of bucky-gel actuators. The actuator operates using the force generated by the movement of ions. In addition to making the paper actuator, we also attempted to improve its performance, using pressure as an index and an electronic scale to measure the pressure. We investigated the optimal dispersant for use in paper actuators, expecting the residual dispersant on the CNT-composite paper to affect the performance differently depending on the type of dispersant. Referring to research on bucky-gel actuators, we also found that the addition of carbon powder to the electrode layers is effective in improving the pressure for paper actuators. We believe that the paper actuator could be used in various situations due to its ease of processing.

Cellulose electro-active paper (EAPap) is an attractive material of electro-active polymers (EAPs) family due to its smart characteristics. EAPap is thin cellulose film coated with metal electrodes on both sides. Its large displacement output, low actuation voltage and low power consumption can be used for biomimetic sensors/actuators and electromechanical system. Because cellulose EAPap is ultra-lightweight, easy to manufacture, inexpensive, biocompatible, and biodegradable, it has been employed for many applications such as bending actuator, vibration sensor, artificial muscle, flexible speaker, and can be advantageous in areas such as micro-insect robots, micro-flying objects, microelectromechanical systems, biosensors, and flexible displays.

In this work, the fabrication of Rochelle salt based piezoelectric structures is illustrated. Structures composed of paper and Rochelle salt are easily manufactured using simple processes. Both manufacturing and the material itself are environmental friendly. Additionally Rochelle salt is biocompatible. In the paradigm of a cleaner piezoelectric technology, the fabrication of active sensing or actuating devices is developed. Thus processing method, material and piezoelectric properties have been studied: (1) pure crystals are used as acoustic actuator, (2) properties of paper impregnated with Rochelle salt are detailed, (3) charge generation is demonstrated on the impregnated material. Actuating and sensing devices are reported in order to highlight the potential of this green piezoelectric material. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We propose a unique soft actuator—a paper actuator—based on carbon-nanotube-composite paper (CNT-composite paper), which is a composite of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and paper. CNT-composite paper has highly efficient properties because of the contained CNTs, such as high electrical conductivity and semiconducting properties. We are considering using CNT-composite paper for various devices. In this study, we successfully developed a paper actuator. We determined the structure of the paper actuator by referencing that of bucky-gel actuators. The actuator operates using the force generated by the movement of ions. In addition to making the paper actuator, we also attempted to improve its performance, using pressure as an index and an electronic scale to measure the pressure. We investigated the optimal dispersant for use in paper actuators, expecting the residual dispersant on the CNT-composite paper to affect the performance differently depending on the type of dispersant. Referring to research on bucky-gel actuators, we also found that the addition of carbon powder to the electrode layers is effective in improving the pressure for paper actuators. We believe that the paper actuator could be used in various situations due to its ease of processing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Real-time biomechanical feedback (BMF) is a relatively new area of research. The potential of using advanced technology to improve motion skills in sport and accelerate physical rehabilitation has been demonstrated in a number of studies. This paper provides a literature review of BMF systems in sports and rehabilitation. Our motivation was to examine the history of the field to capture its evolution over time, particularly how technologies are used and implemented in BMF systems, and to identify the most recent studies showing novel solutions and remarkable implementations. We searched for papers in three research databases: Scopus, Web of Science, and PubMed. The initial search yielded 1167 unique papers. After a rigorous and challenging exclusion process, 144 papers were eventually included in this report. We focused on papers describing applications and systems that implement a complete real-time feedback loop, which must include the use of sensors, real-time processing, and concurrent feedback. A number of research questions were raised, and the papers were studied and evaluated accordingly. We identified different types of physical activities, sensors, modalities, actuators, communications, settings and end users. A subset of the included papers, showing the most perspectives, was reviewed in depth to highlight and present their innovative research approaches and techniques. Real-time BMF has great potential in many areas. In recent years, sensors have been the main focus of these studies, but new types of processing devices, methods, and algorithms, actuators, and communication technologies and protocols will be explored in more depth in the future. This paper presents a broad insight into the field of BMF. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Liquid-phase exfoliation of few-layer graphene in Coca-Cola ® was performed by a kitchen blender for rapid preparation of strain/light/humidity sensitive ink. The advantages of Coca-Cola as an exfoliating medium have been identified from the low structural defect (I D /I G = 0.39) and, moderate carbon to oxygen ratio (C/O = 2.6) obtained by the resulting graphene. It is discovered that a deposition of graphene on photo paper allowed a facile fabrication of smart paper that is able to detect minor strain (0 – 2.0%) with GF of 18.7. Meanwhile, the multi-responsiveness of ink towards light/humidity had been validated from the 10 s response time after the exposure to stimulants with the maximum resulting curvature degree of 16° and 14° under light and humidity changes, respectively. Finally, it is shown that our actuator is able to vertically lift a load (545 mg) from its initial flat position upon irradiation of light (200 mW/cm2). [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The deterioration of large steel structures, such as bridges and power generation facilities built in the 1960s, has become a problem. Such infrastructure requires regular inspections every few years, and many robots have been proposed for structural inspection. However, inspection technology for large steel structures by robots has not yet been established. The establishment of inspection technology in bridges is one of the most important issues in the maintenance of social infrastructure. This paper proposes a novel vibration actuator as a new robot drive source, which combines mechanical resonance and electromagnetic force and enables reciprocating movement by orthogonally arranging multiple vibration components. By controlling the phase difference of these vibration components with only a simple signal generator and amplifier, machine tests showed that reciprocating and rotating reciprocating motions with almost the same characteristics are possible. Experimental results reveal that the vibration actuator is able to pull a load mass of 150 g. In addition, motion analysis is conducted by applying the energy method and considering the effects of phase control on the linear and rotational motions of the vibration actuator. The results obtained in the machine test and the analysis results are mostly in agreement. This confirms that even if the parameters for the vibration actuator are varied, the linear and rotational characteristics of the actuator can be predicted by theoretical calculations. A new drive source for robots and the operation of electromagnetic motors capable of linear and rotational motion are established in this paper. For this reason, the possibility of realizing social infrastructure improvement for large steel structures such as bridges is demonstrated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The abundance of resources in the deep sea continues to inspire mankind's desire for exploration. However, the extreme environments pose a huge challenge for designing deep-sea mechanical devices that are primarily driven by hydraulic and electric motor technology. Researchers are beginning to explore more flexible and innovative drive methods suitable for the deep-sea environment. This paper presents a simple joint mechanism based on a paraffin phase change thermal expansion drive. Its unique design combines a flexible cell with an open structure that allows it to adapt to different pressures at different water depths. Paraffin is enclosed in multiple sets of smaller paraffin cells, which act as thermal expansion material for generating hydraulic pressure. The software comsol was used to perform a finite element analysis of the phase change process in paraffin. By fabricating the mechanical structure, the displacement generated by the thermal expansion is amplified and converted, thus enabling a bi-directional rotational displacement output from the joint while reducing the complexity of the structure. The joints in this paper provide a reliable reference for the design of small deep-sea robot drive systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This review paper discusses the development trends of agricultural autonomous all-terrain vehicles (AATVs) from four cornerstones, such as (1) control strategy and algorithms, (2) sensors, (3) data communication tools and systems, and (4) controllers and actuators, based on 221 papers published in peer-reviewed journals for 1960–2023. The paper highlights a comparative analysis of commonly employed control methods and algorithms by highlighting their advantages and disadvantages. It gives comparative analyses of sensors, data communication tools, actuators, and hardware-embedded controllers. In recent years, many novel developments in AATVs have been made due to advancements in wireless and remote communication, high-speed data processors, sensors, computer vision, and broader applications of AI tools. Technical advancements in fully autonomous control of AATVs remain limited, requiring research into accurate estimation of terrain mechanics, identifying uncertainties, and making fast and accurate decisions, as well as utilizing wireless communication and edge cloud computing. Furthermore, most of the developments are at the research level and have many practical limitations due to terrain and weather conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article first reviews the position control of piezoelectric actuators, particularly charge-based sensorless control systems, which often include a charge estimator as a key component. The rest of the paper is about charge estimators for piezoelectric actuators. Two of the most recent/effective types of these estimators utilise either a sensing capacitor (type I in this paper) or a sensing resistor (type II); the latter (and the newer) type is broadly known as a digital charge estimator. Some experimental results in the literature show that, with the same loss in excitation voltage, a considerably higher amount of charge can be estimated with a type II estimator in comparison with a type I estimator; therefore, the superiority of type II estimators was acknowledged. In order to re-assess this conclusion, this paper equitably compares type I and II estimators through analytical modelling and experimentation. The results indicate that type II estimators have only a slight advantage in estimating higher amounts of charge, if both type I and II estimators are designed appropriately. At the same time, type II estimators have disadvantages; e.g., the resistance of type II estimators has to be tuned to suit different excitation frequencies. This research concludes that capacitor-based (type I) charge estimators for piezoelectric actuators, with pertinent design and implementation, can be still the prime solution for many charge estimation problems despite claims in the literature in the last decade. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A common issue with many commercial rehabilitative exoskeletons and orthoses are that they can be prohibitively expensive for an average individual to afford without additional financial support. Due to this a user may have limited to the usage of such devices within set rehabilitation sessions as opposed to a continual usage. The purpose of this review is therefore to find which actuator implementations would be most suitable for a simplistic, low-cost powered orthoses capable of assisting those with pathologic gait disorders by collating literature from Web of Science, Scopus, and Grey Literature. In this systematic review paper 127 papers were selected from these databases via the PRISMA guidelines, with the financial costs of 25 actuators discovered with 11 distinct actuator groups identified. The review paper will consider a variety of actuator implementations used in existing lower-limb exoskeletons that are specifically designed for the purpose of rehabilitating or aiding those with conditions inhibiting natural movement abilities, such as electric motors, hydraulics, pneumatics, cable-driven actuators, and compliant actuators. Key attributes such as technical simplicity, financial cost, power efficiency, size limitations, accuracy, and reliability are compared for all actuator groups. Statistical findings show that rotary electric motors (which are the most common actuator type within collated literature) and compliant actuators (such as elastic and springs) would be the most suitable actuators for a low-cost implementation. From these results, a possible actuator design will be proposed making use of both rotary electric motors and compliant actuators. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper presents the motivations for the application of actively controlled elements in the running gear of a rail vehicle and the challenges that need to be addressed before deploying vehicles with actively controlled elements in real operation. Furthermore, the paper presents the design of an active element concept and its control for steering the axles of an urban rail vehicle to improve the vehicle's passage through small radius curves. The design takes into account the fundamental issues of cost and safety of the application of active elements, which are addressed in the presented control design by using data from autonomous driving subsystems such as the environmental database or the anti-collision system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we propose a novel MEMS actuator that can achieve a relatively large in-plane displacement of 5 µm or more driven with a low dc voltage of 3.3 to 5.0 V to ensure compatibility with integrated circuits and microcontroller unit (MCU) boards. The drive mechanism is based on a comb-shaped electrostatic microactuator. However, in general, the electrostatic type can achieve only a small amount of displacement in spite of a large driving voltage. On the other hand, by vacuum-sealing a device with such an actuator to reduce air resistance and performing ac driving at the resonant frequency of the device, the driving voltage can be considerably reduced. However, in the case of devices that need to be driven with dc voltages, such as RF switches, 2D optical raster scanners, optical switches, and various sensors, displacement is not amplified even if operating in a vacuum environment. Moreover, it would be strongly desirable to control these devices directly using integrated circuits and MCU boards without any external driver boosters or power supplies. In this paper, we demonstrate that a 6 µm in-plane displacement can be achieved with a dc driving voltage of less than 8.0 V by using a pull-in phenomenon and multiple spring-mass systems based on a comb-shaped electrostatic MEMS actuator. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper comprehensively reviews effective control applications using shape memory alloy (SMA) actuators. Among many applications, this paper focuses on the vibration and stiffness control of flexible structures and shape control in the aerospace engineering field. In the vibration control of flexible structures, three different methods are introduced and discussed, including their merits and demerits. In addition, several control strategies, such as neuro-fuzzy controller, are investigated in terms of the implementation associated with the microchip. In the control process, the inherent hysteretic behavior of SMA is also reviewed as a feedforward loop or actuating force compensator. At the second part, applications on the morphing wing in the field of aerospace engineering are reviewed, and salient characteristics are discussed. In this review, the morphing wing, which is closely related to aircraft stability, is mainly investigated considering control logics and geometrical parameters. For easily understanding morphing control using SMA, a table which summarizes the main contribution of each research is presented. It is expected, since this review article provides numerous approaches for vibration and morphing control conducted over the last decade, it will be very helpful to the same research community to create novel ideas to achieve more advanced and effective results in vibration and morphing control using SMA actuators. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the development of automobile electrification and intelligence, the demand for electro-mechanical braking (EMB) systems is increasing rapidly. This paper reviews the development status of the EMB actuator on the basis of extensive patent and literature research. By analyzing the basic structure of the EMB actuator, this paper decomposes the actuator into five modules: service brake module, parking brake module, brake clearance compensation module, quick-return module and sensor module. On the basis of basic structure, the estimation algorithm for indirect clamping force control and the direct clamping force control algorithm of the actuator are summarized. In addition, the requirements of the EMB system for intelligent vehicles and its typical architecture are analyzed, and the preliminary application of the EMB system in intelligent driving is summarized. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nowadays, programmable logic controllers (PLC) are widely used in many automated systems, especially for the control of various actuators. The most common PLC programming is performed by either using a ladder diagram or a structured text. The paper presents the automatic generation of PLC programs for the purpose of sequentially controlling pneumatic actuators. In this paper, the pneumatic actuators are supplied and controlled by 5/2-way as well as 5/3-way bistable pneumatic valves with electric activation. The valve type depends on the number of positions in which the actuator should come, and the position sensors are used for detecting its movement. The characteristic encoding of the movement of actuators, position sensors and control commands is performed. The advantages of the automatic generation of the PLC commands and the entire program described in this paper are illustrated in a real example. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recently, an increasing number of electromagnetic devices have been using smart fluids. These include ferrofluids, electrorheological fluids, and magnetorheological (MR) fluids. In the paper, magnetorheological fluids are considered for use in a spherical actuator for haptic applications. An approach is presented to the design and optimization of such a device, using finite element method modelling linked with differential evolution (DE). Much consideration was given to the construction of the objective function to be minimized. A novel approach to objective function assembly was used, using reference values based on the model design and created with parameters set to the midpoint values of the selected range. It was found to be a useful strategy when the reference values are unknown. There were four parameters to be optimized. Three of them gravitated towards the boundary value, and the fourth (actuator radius) was somewhere in between. The value of the objective function reached a minimum in the range of actuator radius between 42.9880 mm and 45.0831 mm, which is about a 5% difference in regard to the actuator radius. Three passes of optimization were performed with similar results, proving the robustness of the algorithm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, with the rapid development of science and technology, agricultural robots have gradually begun to replace humans, to complete various agricultural operations, changing traditional agricultural production methods. Not only is the labor input reduced, but also the production efficiency can be improved, which invariably contributes to the development of smart agriculture. This paper reviews the core technologies used for agricultural robots in non-structural environments. In addition, we review the technological progress of drive systems, control strategies, end-effectors, robotic arms, environmental perception, and other related systems. This research shows that in a non-structured agricultural environment, using cameras and light detection and ranging (LiDAR), as well as ultrasonic and satellite navigation equipment, and by integrating sensing, transmission, control, and operation, different types of actuators can be innovatively designed and developed to drive the advance of agricultural robots, to meet the delicate and complex requirements of agricultural products as operational objects, such that better productivity and standardization of agriculture can be achieved. In summary, agricultural production is developing toward a data-driven, standardized, and unmanned approach, with smart agriculture supported by actuator-driven-based agricultural robots. This paper concludes with a summary of the main existing technologies and challenges in the development of actuators for applications in agricultural robots, and the outlook regarding the primary development directions of agricultural robots in the near future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article includes an overview of the materials and a thorough analysis of the methods that are used to produce dielectric electroactive actuator membranes. The paper also presents extensive results from our experimental studies on two types of addition silicone (Silicone Mold Start 15 and Dragon Skin 10M) that are used to manufacture actuators with different active membranes of thicknesses (165 μm and 300 μm, respectively). This study explored in depth the hardware architectures and methodologies for manufacturing the selected actuators. The displacements of the actuators were compared to their responses to two types of voltage excitation: a step response and a sinusoidal signal with an increasing frequency over time. This paper graphically presents the results that we obtained for all devices, with a particular emphasis on the resonance frequencies. When comparing membranes that had the same thickness (165 μm), it was found that the mean amplitude was higher for silicone membranes with lower values for the Young's modulus (DS = 0.57 m m and MS = 0.73 m m ). All experiments were repeated for two series of measurements and the results that were obtained in this study demonstrated the successful implementation of the actuator concepts that were made from the new types of silicone, which have not yet been used for production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In machine hammer peening, an actuator system moves a ram in oscillating motion, which is oriented in angular position, preferably perpendicular, to a workpiece surface. On the tip of the ram, a hammer head with application specific shapes can be mounted. The hammer head is moved across the targeted workpiece surface area by means of a machine tool or an industrial robot. The impacts in defined patterns enable modifications of the surface integrity like smoothing the surface roughness or increasing fatigue strength by induced compressive residual stresses. This paper presents a novel DC-driven actuator system using a highly dynamic short-stroke linear reluctance motor to provide a time or trigger controlled hammer head movement including a system for process monitoring. In contrast to conventional systems, Deterministic Impact Peening (DIP) can be realized by position or speed related triggering of the impacts. The reluctance-based actuator with its geometrically optimized mechatronic system design provides performance characteristics favorable to known machine hammer peening systems. The position-controlled triggering of the hammer head is able to achieve uniform or defined local elastoplastic deformations on the workpiece surface, thus resulting in deterministic residual stress distributions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The possibility to work by using small objects, under the microscopic view, it is a challenge. The force's spectrum differs from that of the macroscopic scale, and many unexpected force vectors will appear. A sharp tip must be the ideal pressure vector on different microscopic small object to push, roll, and brake and so on. The positioning of this tip must be a very precise one, comparatively with the working area dimensions and we consider that 10 microns can be a reasonable measuring unit for these moves that are executed into a specific way in these kinds of cases. The mechatronic system designed to actuate the tip, becomes this paper subject. Indisputable we will talk about an actuator with one or more than one freedom degrees. Mechanical aspects are secondary, but necessary to understand the impact of electrical parameters on the minimum possible unit of movement. Electronic control refers to a switching and PWM signal, through a software that develops both the effective part of generating the control signal and the HMI interface through a touch-screen. The aim of this paper was to determine the minimum micrometric travel distance that can be obtained with a 12-bit PWM signal generated by a Raspberry mini-computer [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The electronic wedge brake system (EWB) used in the automotive industry is a new structure designed for brake-by-wire systems. This paper proposes a novel EWB system which is mainly composed of a screw-driven wedged inner brake pad, a fixed outer brake pad, a fixed caliper-flexible brake rotor and a hybrid stepper motor. The proposed EWB system does not have a planetary gear set or a ball screw mechanism, it simplified the existing EWB systems. The proposed EWB system is designed to take advantage of the self-interlocking ability of the screw mechanism to hold the brakes with zero-overhauling and the self-energizing ability of the wedge brake pad to reduce the braking effort. In the braking phase, the screw driven wedge inner brake pad forces the flexible rotor against a fixed flat brake pad. The rotor is elastically deformed to make the contact against the fixed pad. Except for the applied force, the friction force between the brake rotor and the wedge pad exerts additional force as the wedge is pulled along the direction of rotation, thus requiring a lower brake actuation force. In this paper, the active disturbance rejection control (ADRC) algorithm is introduced to improve the response ability and stability of the proposed EWB. Simulations are performed to demonstrate the effectiveness of the ADRC controller in the proposed EWB system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper studies the output performance improvement of the spherical multi-degree-of-freedom (multi-DOF) motor. The multi-DOF motor is a motor that is designed to drive in multiple axes. Therefore, it is important that the shape of the motor should be fabricated to enable multi-axis driving when designing the multi-DOF motor. In addition, it is essential to consider the output density characteristics and stability characteristic analysis to reduce the volume of the multi-DOF motor and to operate of the motor in the stable range, respectively. In this paper, the structure and operating characteristics of the spherical multi-DOF motor with dual air gaps are described. In order to improve the output characteristics of the multi-DOF motor, characteristics analysis was performed according to the change of the number of the phases and pole pitch angles, and stability characteristic analysis for stable operation of the multi-DOF motor was performed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The unique drive principle and strong manipulation ability of spider legs have led to several bionic robot designs. However, some parameters of bionic actuators still need to be improved, such as torque. Inspired by the hydraulic drive principle of spider legs, this paper describes the design of a bionic actuator characterized by the use of air pressure on each surface and its transmittance in the direction of movement, achieving a torque amplification effect. The produced torque is as high as 4.78 N m. In addition, its torque characteristics during folding motions are similar to those during unfolding motions, showing that the bionic actuator has stable bidirectional drive capability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, a back-drivable and miniature rotary series elastic actuator (RSEA) is proposed for robotic adaptive grasping. A compact arc grooves design has been proposed to effectively reduce the dimension of the RSEA system. The elastic elements could be reliably embedded in the arc grooves without any additional installation structures. The whole RSEA system is characterized as compact, miniature, and modular. The actuating force is controlled via a PI controller by tracking the deformation trajectory of the elastic elements. An underactuated finger mechanism has been adopted to investigate the effectiveness of the RSEA in robotic adaptive grasping. Results reveal that the underactuated finger mechanism could achieve adaptive grasping via the RSEA in a back-drive approach without the requirement of a fingertip force sensor. The RSEA could also exhibit an actuating compliance and a self-sensing characteristic. The actuating compliance characteristic helps in in guaranteeing the safety of human–robot interaction. The RSEA could estimate the external disturbance due to its self-sensing characteristic, which has the potential to replace the fingertip force sensor in grasping force perception applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Servo‐hydraulic actuators are typically employed in real‐time hybrid simulation (RTHS) to impose dynamic loads on a specimen. The success and reliability of an RTHS depend on the accurate tracking of the command displacements by the actuators. This paper introduces a new adaptive compensation approach, adaptive discrete feedforward (ADF) controller, based on the principles of model‐based feedforward and feedback (MFF) controller. While the MFF controller relies on an accurate model of the controlled system obtained through system identification, the ADF controller updates its parameters to adapt to the changing dynamics of the controlled system during the test. This paper presents an experimental parametric investigation that determines the parameters required for implementing the ADF controller, such as the buffer size and the controller updating frequency. The performance of the ADF controller was compared with two other compensation methods: MFF controller and adaptive time series compensator in a series of predefined displacement tracking tests and RTHSs considering both linear and nonlinear specimens. The results are discussed in detail, where the ADF controller was shown to considerably improve the capability of the servo‐hydraulic actuator in tracking the command displacements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]