Journal ArticleDOI
A novel variable stiffness mechanism for dielectric elastomer actuators
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TLDR
In this article, a variable stiffness mechanism was proposed for the design of variable stiffness dielectric elastomer actuator (VSDEA), which combines a flexible strip with a DEA in a dielectoric elastome minimum energy structure.Abstract:
In this paper, a novel variable stiffness mechanism is proposed for the design of a variable stiffness dielectric elastomer actuator (VSDEA) which combines a flexible strip with a DEA in a dielectric elastomer minimum energy structure The DEA induces an analog tuning of the transverse curvature of the strip, thus conveniently providing a voltage-controllable flexural rigidity The VSDEA tends to be a fully flexible and compact structure with the advantages of simplicity and fast response Both experimental and theoretical investigations are carried out to reveal the variable stiffness performances of the VSDEA The effect of the clamped location on the bending stiffness of the VSDEA is analyzed, and then effects of the lengths, the loading points and the applied voltages on the bending stiffness are experimentally investigated An analytical model is developed to verify the availability of this variable stiffness mechanism, and the theoretical results demonstrate that the bending stiffness of the VSDEA decreases as the applied voltage increases, which agree well with the experimental data Moreover, the experimental results show that the maximum change of the relative stiffness can reach about 8880% It can be useful for the design and optimization of active variable stiffness structures and DEAs for soft robots, vibration control, and morphing applicationsread more
Citations
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Journal ArticleDOI
Mechanics of dielectric elastomer structures: A review
Tongqing Lu,Cheng Ma,Tiejun Wang +2 more
TL;DR: In this paper, a review of the recent advances in the theory of dielectric elastomer and demonstrates some examples of using theory to design DE transducers is presented, from the simplest homogeneous deformation of a flat membrane to the highly complex bifurcations of a tube.
Journal ArticleDOI
Vibration of mechanically-assembled 3D microstructures formed by compressive buckling
Heling Wang,Xin Ning,Haibo Li,Haiwen Luan,Yeguang Xue,Xinge Yu,Zhichao Fan,Luming Li,John A. Rogers,Yihui Zhang,Yonggang Huang +10 more
TL;DR: The developed analytical model can be used in the development of new 3D vibrational microplatforms, for example, to enable simultaneous measurement of diverse mechanical properties of thin films and biomaterials.
Journal ArticleDOI
Effect of viscoelasticity on the nonlinear dynamic behavior of dielectric elastomer minimum energy structures
TL;DR: In this paper, an analytical model was developed to analyse the viscoelastic effect of DE membrane on the nonlinear dynamic behavior of the DEMES. And the developed dynamic model predicts the initial shape, DC and AC response, periodicity of the DEES for different values of viscosity parameter.
Journal ArticleDOI
Self-locking mechanism for variable stiffness rigid–soft gripper
TL;DR: A self-locking mechanism realized by an exoskeleton structure provides a simple but effective method to enhance the performance of soft grippers and simplify the operation for variable-stiffness grasping.
Journal ArticleDOI
Multisegment annular dielectric elastomer actuators for soft robots
TL;DR: In this article, a multisegment annular dielectric elastomer actuator (ADEA) is presented, which is an annular configuration with six DE segments distributed circumferentially, each of the DE segments can be actuated independently, thus various active deformations can be achieved by actuating different combinations of DE segments.
References
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Journal ArticleDOI
High-Speed Electrically Actuated Elastomers with Strain Greater Than 100%
TL;DR: It is shown that prestraining the film further improves the performance of electrical actuators made from films of dielectric elastomers coated on both sides with compliant electrode material.
Journal ArticleDOI
Theory of dielectric elastomers
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors present a theory of dielectric elastomers, developed within continuum mechanics and thermodynamics, and motivated by molecular pictures and empirical observations, which couples large deformation and electric potential, and describes nonlinear and nonequilibrium behavior, such as electromechanical instability and viscoelasticity.
Journal ArticleDOI
Compliant actuator designs
TL;DR: The state of the art in the design of actuators with adaptable passive compliance is described, which is not preferred for classical position-controlled applications such as pick and place operations but is preferred in novel robots where safe human- robot interaction is required or in applications where energy efficiency must be increased by adapting the actuator's resonance frequency.
Journal ArticleDOI
A nonlinear field theory of deformable dielectrics
TL;DR: In this article, a new formulation of the field theory of dielectric solids is proposed, which does not start with Newton's laws of mechanics and Maxwell-Faraday theory of electrostatics, but produces them as consequences.
Journal ArticleDOI
Theory of dielectric elastomers capable of giant deformation of actuation.
Xuanhe Zhao,Zhigang Suo +1 more
TL;DR: The theory predicts that, for an elastomer with a stress-stretch curve of a desirable form, the voltage can induce giant deformation.
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