Bioinspired Soft Actuation System Using Shape Memory Alloys

Abstract: Soft robotics requires technologies that are capable of generating forces even though the bodies are composed of very light, flexible and soft elements. A soft actuation mechanism was developed in this work, taking inspiration from the arm of the Octopus vulgaris , specifically from the muscular hydrostat which represents its constitutive muscular structure. On the basis of the authors’ previous works on shape memory alloy (SMA) springs used as soft actuators, a specific arrangement of such SMA springs is presented, which is combined with a flexible braided sleeve featuring a conical shape and a motor-driven cable. This robot arm is able to perform tasks in water such as grasping, multi-bending gestures, shortening and elongation along its longitudinal axis. The whole structure of the arm is described in detail and experimental results on workspace, bending and grasping capabilities and generated forces are presented. Moreover, this paper demonstrates that it is possible to realize a self-contained octopus-like robotic arm with no rigid parts, highly adaptable and suitable to be mounted on underwater vehicles. Its softness allows interaction with all types of objects with very low risks of damage and limited safety issues, while at the same time producing relatively high forces when necessary.

[1]  Matteo Cianchetti,et al.  A general method for the design and fabrication of shape memory alloy active spring actuators , 2012 .

[2]  Paolo Dario,et al.  Design and development of a soft robotic octopus arm exploiting embodied intelligence , 2012, 2012 IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation.

[3]  Kohei Nakajima,et al.  FROM THE OCTOPUS TO SOFT ROBOTS CONTROL: AN OCTOPUS INSPIRED BEHAVIOR CONTROL ARCHITECTURE FOR SOFT ROBOTS , 2012 .

[4]  B. Hochner,et al.  Octopuses Use a Human-like Strategy to Control Precise Point-to-Point Arm Movements , 2006, Current Biology.

[5]  José L. Pons,et al.  Emerging Actuator Technologies: A Micromechatronic Approach , 2005 .

[6]  W. Kier,et al.  Tongues, tentacles and trunks: the biomechanics of movement in muscular‐hydrostats , 1985 .

[7]  Tao Li,et al.  Behavior switching using reservoir computing for a soft robotic arm , 2012, 2012 IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation.

[8]  Tamar Flash,et al.  Dynamic model of the octopus arm. I. Biomechanics of the octopus reaching movement. , 2005, Journal of neurophysiology.

[9]  B Mazzolai,et al.  Soft robotic arm inspired by the octopus: I. From biological functions to artificial requirements , 2012, Bioinspiration & biomimetics.

[10]  Huai-Ti Lin,et al.  GoQBot: a caterpillar-inspired soft-bodied rolling robot , 2011, Bioinspiration & biomimetics.

[11]  Ian D. Walker,et al.  Design and experimental testing of the OctArm soft robot manipulator , 2006, SPIE Defense + Commercial Sensing.

[12]  C. Laschi,et al.  Development of the functional unit of a completely soft octopus-like robotic arm , 2012, 2012 4th IEEE RAS & EMBS International Conference on Biomedical Robotics and Biomechatronics (BioRob).

[13]  Darwin G. Caldwell,et al.  Timing-based control via echo state network for soft robotic arm , 2012, The 2012 International Joint Conference on Neural Networks (IJCNN).

[14]  TRANSMISSION OF SENSORY RESPONSES IN THE PERIPHERAL NERVOUS SYSTEM OF THE ARM OF oCtoPuS VulGariS , .

[15]  Y. Engel,et al.  , Ranit Aharonov , Yaakov Engel , Binyamin of the Octopus Reaching Movement Dynamic Model of the Octopus Arm , 2005 .

[16]  Nikolaos G. Tsagarakis,et al.  An octopus anatomy-inspired robotic arm , 2010, 2010 IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems.

[17]  Darwin G. Caldwell,et al.  Control of pneumatic muscle actuators , 1995 .

[18]  Shashank Priya,et al.  A biomimetic robotic jellyfish (Robojelly) actuated by shape memory alloy composite actuators , 2011, Bioinspiration & biomimetics.

[19]  Matteo Cianchetti,et al.  Soft Robotics: New Perspectives for Robot Bodyware and Control , 2014, Front. Bioeng. Biotechnol..

[20]  P. Breedveld,et al.  A new, easily miniaturized steerable endoscope , 2005, IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Magazine.

[21]  Kyu-Jin Cho,et al.  Omega-Shaped Inchworm-Inspired Crawling Robot With Large-Index-and-Pitch (LIP) SMA Spring Actuators , 2013, IEEE/ASME Transactions on Mechatronics.

[22]  Paolo Dario,et al.  Soft Robot Arm Inspired by the Octopus , 2012, Adv. Robotics.

[23]  Arianna Menciassi,et al.  STIFF-FLOP surgical manipulator: Mechanical design and experimental characterization of the single module , 2013, 2013 IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems.

[24]  Cecilia Laschi,et al.  Soft robotics: a bioinspired evolution in robotics. , 2013, Trends in biotechnology.