Architectures of soft pneumatic actuators for wearable human assistive applications
Zhang, Xiaotian
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https://hdl.handle.net/2142/98313
Description
Title
Architectures of soft pneumatic actuators for wearable human assistive applications
Author(s)
Zhang, Xiaotian
Issue Date
2017-07-21
Director of Research (if dissertation) or Advisor (if thesis)
Krishnan, Girish
Department of Study
Mechanical Sci & Engineering
Discipline
Mechanical Engineering
Degree Granting Institution
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Degree Name
M.S.
Degree Level
Thesis
Keyword(s)
Soft robotics
Assistive device
Abstract
This thesis presents the design and analysis of two novel fabric-like architectures of soft pneumatic actuators known as Fiber Reinforced Elastomeric Enclosures (FREEs) and studies the implication of wearing them as sleeves around the elbow joint. The first architecture is a helical arrangement of FREEs, which is shown to directionally modulate its stiffness. The second architecture is a nested arrangement of FREEs, which is shown to provide 70% more actuation stroke than a single actuator. The thesis presents an analytical framework, first to accurately capture the behavior of a contracting FREE actuator, and then the model stiffness modulation and stroke amplification functionalities of the two architectures. These models are verified with both benchtop experiments and preliminary human testing. The thesis presents design guidelines to configure these architectures for any functional and size requirements.
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