Mechanical Simplification of Variable-Stiffness Actuators Using Dielectric Elastomer Transducers

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dc.contributor.ORCID0000-0002-9740-1278 (Allen, DP)
dc.contributor.ORCID0000-0001-7697-4387 (Bolívar, E)
dc.contributor.ORCID0000-0002-5898-0449 (Farmer, S)
dc.contributor.ORCID0000-0003-0135-0531 (Voit, WE)
dc.contributor.ORCID0000-0002-0729-2857 (Gregg, RD)
dc.contributor.authorAllen, David P.
dc.contributor.authorBolívar, Edgar
dc.contributor.authorFarmer, Sophie
dc.contributor.authorVoit, Walter E.
dc.contributor.authorGregg, Robert D.
dc.contributor.utdAuthorAllen, David P.
dc.contributor.utdAuthorBolívar, Edgar
dc.contributor.utdAuthorFarmer, Sophie
dc.contributor.utdAuthorVoit, Walter E.
dc.contributor.utdAuthorGregg, Robert D.
dc.date.accessioned2020-03-05T20:35:57Z
dc.date.available2020-03-05T20:35:57Z
dc.date.issued2019-05-20
dc.description.abstractLegged and gait-assistance robots can walk more efficiently if their actuators are compliant. The adjustable compliance of variable-stiffness actuators (VSAs) can enhance this benefit. However, this functionality requires additional mechanical components making VSAs impractical for some uses due to increased weight, volume, and cost. VSAs would be more practical if they could modulate the stiffness of their springs without additional components, which usually include moving parts and an additional motor. Therefore, we designed a VSA that uses dielectric elastomer transducers (DETs) for springs. It does not need mechanical stiffness-adjusting components because DETs soften due to electrostatic forces. This paper presents details and performance of our design. Our DET VSA demonstrated independent modulation of its equilibrium position and stiffness. Our design approach could make it practical to obtain the benefits of variable-stiffness actuation with less weight, volume, and cost than normally accompanies them, once weaknesses of DET technology are addressed. © 2019 by the authors.
dc.description.departmentErik Jonsson School of Engineering and Computer Science
dc.description.sponsorshipNational Science Foundation under award number 1830360; DARPA Director’s Fellowship (No. D13AP00049)
dc.identifier.bibliographicCitationAllen, D. P., E. Bolívar, S. Farmer, W. Voit, et al. 2019. "Mechanical simplification of variable-stiffness actuators using dielectric elastomer transducers." Actuators 8(2): art. 44, doi: 10.3390/act8020044
dc.identifier.issn2076-0825
dc.identifier.issue2
dc.identifier.urihttp://dx.doi.org/10.3390/act8020044
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/10735.1/7350
dc.identifier.volume8
dc.language.isoen
dc.publisherMDPI AG
dc.rightsCC BY 4.0 (Attribution)
dc.rights©2019 The Authors
dc.rights.urihttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
dc.source.journalActuators
dc.subjectDielectric devices--Elastomers--Actuators
dc.subjectDielectric devices--Elastomers--Transducers
dc.subjectActuators (Variable stiffness)
dc.subjectRobots
dc.subjectModulation (Electronics)
dc.titleMechanical Simplification of Variable-Stiffness Actuators Using Dielectric Elastomer Transducers
dc.type.genrearticle

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