Modular force approximating soft robotic pneumatic actuator (original) (raw)
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Micromachines
Soft robotics, a recent advancement in robotics systems, distinguishes itself by utilizing soft and flexible materials like silicon rubber, prioritizing safety during human interaction, and excelling in handling complex or delicate objects. Soft pneumatic actuators, a prevalent type of soft robot, are the focus of this paper. A new geometrical parameter for soft artificial pneumatic muscles is introduced, enabling the prediction of actuation behavior using analytical models based on specific design parameters. The study investigated the impact of the chamber pitch parameter and actuation conditions on the deformation direction and internal stress of three tested soft pneumatic muscle (SPM) models. Simulation involved the modeling of hyperelastic materials using finite element analysis. Additionally, an artificial neural network (ANN) was employed to predict pressure values in three chambers at desired Cartesian positions. The trained ANN model demonstrated exceptional performance. I...
Study on the Design of Soft Surgical Robots for Endoscopic NOTES Applications
With the advance of surgical operation from open surgery toward Minimally Invasive Surgery (MIS) and recently Natural Orifice Transluminal Endoscopic Surgery (NOTES) the surgeons are barely keeping up with the instrumentation. Endoscope that was originally a tool to examine the inside of patient body is now developed to perform surgical task. Advances have been made in the conventional endoscopic instruments, however several problems still arise.
IEEE Access
Soft robotics is a rapidly evolving field where robots are fabricated using highly deformable materials and usually follow a bioinspired design. Their high dexterity and safety make them ideal for applications such as gripping, locomotion, and biomedical devices, where the environment is highly dynamic and sensitive to physical interaction. Pneumatic actuation remains the dominant technology in soft robotics due to its low cost and mass, fast response time, and easy implementation. Given the significant number of publications in soft robotics over recent years, newcomers and even established researchers may have difficulty assessing the state of the art. To address this issue, this article summarizes the development of soft pneumatic actuators and robots up until the The scope of this article includes the design, modeling, fabrication, actuation, characterization, sensing, control, and applications of soft robotic devices. In addition to a historical overview, there is a special emphasis on recent advances such as novel designs, differential simulators, analytical and numerical modeling methods, topology optimization, data-driven modeling and control methods, hardware control boards, and nonlinear estimation and control techniques. Finally, the capabilities and limitations of soft pneumatic actuators and robots are discussed and directions for future research are identified. INDEX TERMS Soft robotics, soft pneumatic actuator, design, modeling, sensing, control. MATHEUS S. XAVIER (Graduate Student Member, IEEE) received the B.S. degree in science and technology and the B.Eng. degree in control and automation engineering from the Federal
2016
Using pliable materials for the construction of robot bodies presents new and interesting challenges for the robotics community. Within the EU project entitled STIFFness controllable Flexible & Learnable manipulator for surgical Operations (STIFF-FLOP), a bendable, segmented robot arm has been developed. The exterior of the arm is composed of a soft material (silicone), encasing an internal structure that contains air-chamber actuators and a variety of sensors for monitoring applied force, position and shape of the arm as it bends. Due to the physical characteristics of the arm, a proper model of robot kinematics and dynamics is difficult to infer from the sensor data. Here we propose a non-linear approach to predicting the robot arm posture, by training a feed-forward neural network with a structured series of pressures values applied to the arm's actuators. The model is developed across a set of seven different experiments. Because the STIFF-FLOP arm is intended for use in sur...
A review on recent advances in soft surgical robots for endoscopic applications
The International Journal of Medical Robotics and Computer Assisted Surgery, 2019
Background: Soft materials, with their compliant properties, enable conformity and safe interaction with human body. With the advance in actuation and sensing of soft materials, new paradigm in robotics called "soft robotics" emerges. Soft robotics has become a new approach in designing medical devices such as wearable robotic gloves and exoskeleton. However, application of soft robotics in surgical instrument inside human body is still in its infancy. Aims: In this paper, current application and design of soft robots specifically applied for endoscopy are reviewed. Materials & Methods: Different aspects in the implementation of soft robotics in endoscope design were reviewed. The key studies about MIS and NOTES were reviewed to establish the clinical background and extract the limitations of current endoscopic device in the last decade. Results and discussion: In this review study, the implementation of soft robotics concepts in endoscopic application, with highlights on different features of several soft endoscopes, were evaluated. The progress in different aspects of soft robotics endoscope, current state, and future perspectives were also discussed. Conclusion: Based on the survey on the structural specification, actuation, sensing, and stiffening the future soft surgical endoscopes are recommended to fulfil the following specifications: safe especially from pressure leakage, fully biocompatible materials, MR-compatible, capable for large bending in at least two antagonistic directions, modularity, adjustable stiffness.
Integrated soft bending sensor for soft robotic manipulators
Soft, flexible robotic manipulators offer many advantages to Minimally Invasive Surgery (MIS) compared to using conventional rigid laparoscopic instruments: Soft robots are inherently safe due to the material used for the body structure and their compliant actuation system allowing safe interaction with its soft environment; the flexibility allows bending around organs and navigating along trajectories within the complex anatomical environment. To feedback the tip position of these manipulators required for position control for instance, it is beneficial to integrate a bending sensor that accurately determines the curvature. This paper presents a bending sensor embedded into a pneumatically actuated, soft manipulator based on a silicone body structure. The sensing system is made of three threads of stretchable electro-conductive yarn inserted in the periphery for direct measurement of the actuation chamber lengths. The bending sensor is able to measure elongation and bending behaviour. The soft structure of the manipulator is maintained. Our sensor is benchmarked using a commercially available magnetic tracking system.
A Soft-Robotic End-Effector for Independently Actuating Endoscopic Catheters
Journal of Mechanisms and Robotics, 2019
This paper deals with the design, development, modeling and experimental validation of a prototype endoscopic attachment that can be actuated independently by soft actuators to position an endoscopic catheter tip to a desired location. The soft actuators are miniaturized pneumatic artificial muscles (MPAMs) and by applying 137 kPa-827 kPa pressure to one or more MPAMs, the tip of the endoscopic catheter can be positioned in an approximately hemispherical region of 45 mm radius. An optimization-based forward kinematic model to predict the profile of the actuated end-effector is developed. Experiments conducted on the prototype show that the kinematics model can predict the deformation profile of the end-effector with a maximum error of 2 mm. An inverse kinematics model to estimate the pressure required in the MPAMs to position the tip of the catheter at a specified point is also developed. The pressures in the MPAMs are controlled using an ATmel ATMega 2560 micro-controller with the inputs generated with a thumb-stick to show that real-time actuation is possible. Finally, ex-vivo experiments were conducted to show that the developed prototype endeffector can be successfully used to independently actuate endoscopic catheters.
Soft robotic systems for endoscopic interventions
Endorobotics, 2022
The field of soft robotics has established itself as an important research topic within robotics, offering several advantages over traditional rigid robots. This paradigm shift introduced by advances in material science and manufacturing methods has enabled new capabilities. These emerging soft robotic systems can squeeze and move through narrow openings, elongate, navigate around obstacles, and are considered inherently safe. In particular, the healthcare domain has been identified as one of the areas that might benefit from applying soft robotic systems. This chapter focuses on the application of soft robotic systems for endoscopic interventions. At the outset, we provide an overview of endoscopic procedures and commercially available technologies and tools highlighting current challenges and how soft robotics might benefit. As soft robotic systems for healthcare application are a relatively young research area, we compiled a list of recommendations for creating soft robotic medical devices. Relevant topics include dimension requirements, bio-compatibility of materials as well as reliability, durability specification and ergonomics. Finally, a discussion of current soft robotic medical devices concerning the aforementioned endoscopic procedures will identify shortcomings and future research challenges.
A review of recent advancements in soft and flexible robots for medical applications
The International Journal of Medical Robotics and Computer Assisted Surgery, 2020
Background: Soft and flexible robots for medical applications are needed to change their flexibility over a wide range to perform tasks adequately. The mechanism and theory of flexibility has been a scientific issue and is of interest to the community. Methods: Recent advancements of bionics, flexible actuation, sensing and intelligent control algorithms as well as tunable stiffness have been referenced when soft and flexible robots are developed. The benefits and limitations of these relevant studies and how they affect the flexibility are discussed, and possible research directions are explored. Results: The bionic materials and structures that demonstrate the potential capabilities of the soft medical robot flexibility are the fundamental guarantee for clinical medical applications. Flexible actuation that used to provide power, intelligent control algorithms which are the exact executors, and the wide range stiffness of the soft materials are the three important influence factors for soft medical robots. Conclusion: Some reasonable suggestions and possible solutions for soft and flexible medical robots are proposed, including novel materials, flexible actuation concepts with a built-in source of energy or power, programmable flexibility and adjustable stiffness.
2016
Using pliable materials for the construction of robot bodies presents new and interesting challenges for the robotics community. Within the EU project entitled STIFFness controllable Flexible & Learnable manipulator for surgical Operations (STIFF-FLOP), a bendable, segmented robot arm has been developed. The exterior of the arm is composed of a soft material (silicone), encasing an internal structure that contains air-chamber actuators and a variety of sensors for monitoring applied force, position and shape of the arm as it bends. Due to the physical characteristics of the arm, a proper model of robot kinematics and dynamics is difficult to infer from the sensor data. Here we propose a non-linear approach to predicting the robot arm posture, by training a feed-forward neural network with a structured series of pressures values applied to the arm's actuators. The model is developed across a set of seven different experiments. Because the STIFF-FLOP arm is intended for use in sur...