Soft actuators,capable of producing mechanical work in response to external stimuli,have potential applications in robotics and exoskeletons.However,they face major challenges related to energy supply,especially in lo...Soft actuators,capable of producing mechanical work in response to external stimuli,have potential applications in robotics and exoskeletons.However,they face major challenges related to energy supply,especially in long-distance and miniaturized environments.Fuel-driven actuators offer a promising solution by enabling the conversion of chemical energy into mechanical energy,supporting selfsustaining operations.Chemical energy from fuel can be converted into mechanical energy either directly or indirectly through methods such as electron transfer-induced charge injection,structural changes,fuel-to-electricity conversion,fuel combustioninduced heat,or fuel-induced pneumatic actuation.This paper provides a comprehensive review of recent developments in fuel-powered actuators,covering their fundamental principles,advancements,and challenges.It concludes with an outlook for miniaturized and autonomous robots,highlighting the great potential of integrating fuel-powered actuators.展开更多
This paper studies cooperative robust parallel operation of multiple actuators over an undirected communication graph.The plant is modeled as an uncertain linear system,and the actuators are linear and identical.Based...This paper studies cooperative robust parallel operation of multiple actuators over an undirected communication graph.The plant is modeled as an uncertain linear system,and the actuators are linear and identical.Based on the internal model principle,a distributed dynamic output feedback control law is proposed to achieve both robust output regulation of the closed-loop system and plant input sharing among the actuators.A practical example of five motors cooperatively driving an uncertain shaft under an external load torque is presented to show the effectiveness of the proposed control law.展开更多
Azobenzene-based polymer actuators show great promise for photoactuation owing to their unique photoisomerization behavior and tailorable molecular programmability.However,conventional systems are limited by inadequat...Azobenzene-based polymer actuators show great promise for photoactuation owing to their unique photoisomerization behavior and tailorable molecular programmability.However,conventional systems are limited by inadequate mechanical robustness,self-healing,and recyclability,hindering their practical implementation.Herein,we present a high-performance azobenzene-functionalized polyurethane(AzoPU)elastomer actuator designed via molecular engineering of photoactive azobenzene moieties and dynamic disulfide bonds.AzoPU exhibits exceptional mechanical properties with retained performance after multiple reshaping cycles,enabled by well-engineered hard-soft segments and synergistic stress dissipation from weak covalent bonds/hierarchical hydrogen bonds.It achieves over 93%self-healing efficiency at room temperature owing to the synergistic interplay of disulfide bonds in the polymer backbone and intermolecular hydrogen bonds.Furthermore,it demonstrates remarkable light-triggered actuation behavior,achieving a phototropic bending angle exceeding 180°toward the light source within 45 s.To showcase its practical potential,proof-of-concept photoactuated devices with flower-,hook-,and gripper-like and local-orientation processed strip-shaped structures were fabricated,which exhibited rapid and reversible light-triggered deformation.This study proposes a novel strategy for the development of intelligent polymeric materials that integrate light responsiveness,self-healing,and recyclability,thus holding great promise for applications in flexible electronics,smart actuators,and sustainable functional materials.展开更多
The flight envelope of Air Turbo Rocket(ATR)engines is broader compared to conventional aero-engines,and designing a full-envelope controller using traditional methods poses significant challenges due to a burdensome ...The flight envelope of Air Turbo Rocket(ATR)engines is broader compared to conventional aero-engines,and designing a full-envelope controller using traditional methods poses significant challenges due to a burdensome design process.To address this issue,this paper proposes a self-learning neural network controller design method based on Reinforcement Learning(RL).Additionally,a method for predictive compensation and stability rewards is proposed to reduce the system oscillation caused by actuator delay.This approach simplifies the actuator to a firstorder inertial element exhibiting pure delay.A simulation environment for the ATR engineactuator system is first established.Based on this environment,a self-learning neural network controller using a predictive compensator and the Proximal Policy Optimization(PPO)algorithm is then developed.Furthermore,the temporal difference signals from the controller output are integrated into the reward function to enhance system stability.The proposed method is validated through numerical simulations and semi-physical experiments.The numerical simulation results demonstrate that the proposed method increases the system's tolerance to delays from 20 ms to 400 ms.Under an actuator delay of 400 ms,the average steady-state error remains less than0.1%,the overshoot is limited to 1%,and the settling time does not exceed 3 s.Moreover,compared to the traditional method,the proposed method exhibits higher adaptability to model errors and variations in flight conditions.In the conducted semi-physical simulation experiments,the proposed method achieves stable control of a real electric pump.展开更多
This study develops an event-triggered control strategy utilizing the fully actuated system approach for nonlinear interconnected large-scale systems containing actuator failures.First,to reduce the complexity of the ...This study develops an event-triggered control strategy utilizing the fully actuated system approach for nonlinear interconnected large-scale systems containing actuator failures.First,to reduce the complexity of the design process,we transform the studied system into the form of a fully actuated system through a state transformation.Then,to address the unknown nonlinear functions and actuator fault parameters,we employ neural networks and adaptive estimation techniques,respectively.Moreover,to reduce the control cost and improve the control efficiency,we introduce event-triggered inputs into the control strategy.It is proved by the Lyapunov stability analysis that all signals of the closed-loop system are bounded and the output of system eventually converge to a bounded region.The efficacy of the control approach is ultimately demonstrated via the simulation of an actual machine feeding system.展开更多
Soft actuators based on cellulose with highly electro-responsive properties have attracted significant attention in the fields of wearable devices,medical and healthcare devices,soft robots,and human-computer interact...Soft actuators based on cellulose with highly electro-responsive properties have attracted significant attention in the fields of wearable devices,medical and healthcare devices,soft robots,and human-computer interactions.However,existing cellulose-based soft actuators still need to be improved in terms of actuation displacement,bending strain,and driving frequency.Herein,we report a highly responsive ionic actuator using carboxylated cellulose nanofibers from wood pulp(CNFp),graphene nanosheets(GN),and ionic liquids(IL).The CNFp-IL-GN actuator exhibited a large specific capacitance of 749.11 mF/cm^(2)under a 25 mV/s scan rate,a large mechanical displacement(25 mm peak-to-peak)under 2.0 V at 0.1 Hz,a broad actuation frequency(0.1 to 10 Hz),and long working stability.Furthermore,bioinspired applications,including bionic dragonflies and artificial soft-touch fingers,have been demonstrated.These results demonstrate that the proposed actuator is a significant method for advancing soft actuators,artificial muscles,and bioinspired robots.展开更多
The soft actuator is characterized by high safety,flexibility,and adaptability.It is capable of both active and passive defor-mations.This paper presents a discrete degree of freedom(DOF)method for soft actuators to r...The soft actuator is characterized by high safety,flexibility,and adaptability.It is capable of both active and passive defor-mations.This paper presents a discrete degree of freedom(DOF)method for soft actuators to reveal DOF characteristics.The method draws on the superposition mechanism of the deformation characteristics of the sarcomere in the skeletal muscles of living organisms.Firstly,the multi-DOF deformation characteristics of the soft actuator are discretized into superimposed combinations of single-DOF micro-units.Then,the soft actuator was determined to contain deformation characteristics such as extension-contraction,bending,and twisting.Eighteen types of micro-units with basic deforma-tion characteristics were obtained depending on the axis and orientation.Further,the mapping relationship between the combination of micro-units and the motion characteristics of the soft actuator based on the GF set theory was established.Finally,an active-passive DOF co-structured soft actuator(APCSA)was developed.The graphical approach analyzes the experimental results,and it can be concluded that active and passive DOFs can coexist in the composite deformation of the soft actuator.展开更多
Fabricating macroscale smart actuators that can convert light energy into other forms of energy,especially mechanical and electrical energy,is of great significance.Herein,a simple and efficient 4D printed method for ...Fabricating macroscale smart actuators that can convert light energy into other forms of energy,especially mechanical and electrical energy,is of great significance.Herein,a simple and efficient 4D printed method for fabricating photomechanical actuators based on micro/nano-scale crystals is developed.The high versatility and generality of this method are successfully demonstrated using nine different types of photoresponsive crystalline actuators,including acylhydrazone-,anthracene-,olefin-,and azobenzene-based molecular crystals and covalent organic frameworks(COFs).The low-cost neutral silicone sealant elastomer is first chosen as the photomechanical 4D printing matrix.Notably,these actuators can be used to perform bionic motions(the first windmills spin using crystalline material,dragonflies fly,and sunflowers bloom)under the stimulation of visible light and can realize energy conversion from mechanical energy into electricity when coupled with a piezoelectric membrane.This work provides new insights into the design and manufacturing of smart photomechanical actuators and electricity generators and expands the application scope of COFs.展开更多
Microrobotic systems are emerging as transformative technology for minimally invasive medicine,driven by innovations in actuation mechanisms,advanced fabrication paradigms,and multifunctional system integration.This c...Microrobotic systems are emerging as transformative technology for minimally invasive medicine,driven by innovations in actuation mechanisms,advanced fabrication paradigms,and multifunctional system integration.This comprehensive review analyzes the evolution of microrobotic technologies through three critical dimensions:(1)actuation modalities,including magnetic,optical,acoustic,chemical,and biological actuation,with a focus on the synergistic advantages of hybrid actuation strategies in complex internal physiological environments;(2)Fabrication methods cover technolo-gies such as photolithography,microinjection molding,self-assembly,and 3D printing,emphasizing innovative strategies involving multi-technology integration and collaborative manufacturing of bio/non-bio hybrid materials;(3)Internal phys-iological applications involve disease diagnosis,targeted drug delivery,minimally invasive surgery,tissue engineering,and cell manipulation,highlighting the broad prospects of microrobots in precision medicine.Despite remarkable progress,critical challenges remain,including low actuation efficiency,as seen in acoustic systems,limited biocompatibility,exem-plified by the toxicity of hydrogen peroxide in chemical actuation,delayed clinical translation,and other related challenges that must be addressed to advance the field.展开更多
This paper presents an untethered pneumatic soft robot which can crawl both in horizontal and vertical pipes with different sizes and cross sections.This robot uses modular origami inspired soft-rigid hybrid actuator ...This paper presents an untethered pneumatic soft robot which can crawl both in horizontal and vertical pipes with different sizes and cross sections.This robot uses modular origami inspired soft-rigid hybrid actuator to produce telescoping and anchoring movements powered by vacuum pressure.The introduction of grooves to valley crease significantly lowers the full contraction vacuum pressure and improves the response,allowing the system can be driven by an onboard micro vacuum pump,enabling the possibility of miniaturization,integration,and untethered operation of the robot.A series of crawling experiments in pipes with different sizes and cross sections constructed by acrylic are conducted to validate the crawling performance of the robot.Within square cross-section pipes,the robot can achieve a velocity of 9.4 mm/s in horizontal crawling and 7.7 mm/s in vertical upward crawling.For horizontal crawling in circular pipes,it can reach a velocity of 8.0 mm/s.When fully charged,the robot can crawl for 40 min with a mileage of 16.649 m,which is sufficient for most drainage and industrial pipelines detection tasks.The robot demonstrates excellent endurance and speed performance that exceed most existing untethered soft pipe crawling robots.展开更多
Tendon-driven robots have distinct advantages in high-dynamic performance motion and high-degree-of-freedom manipulation.However,these robots face challenges related to control complexity,intricate tendon drive paths,...Tendon-driven robots have distinct advantages in high-dynamic performance motion and high-degree-of-freedom manipulation.However,these robots face challenges related to control complexity,intricate tendon drive paths,and tendon slackness.In this study,the authors present a novel modular tendon-driven actuator design that integrates a series elastic element.The actuator incorporates a unique magnetic position sensing technology that enables observation of the length and tension of the tendon and features an exceptionally compact design.The modular architecture of the tendon-driven actuator addresses the complexity of tendon drive paths,while the tension observation functionality mitigates slackness issues.The design and modeling of the actuator are described in this paper,and a series of tests are conducted to validate the simulation model and to test the performance of the proposed actuator.The model can be used for training robot control neural networks based on simulation,thereby overcoming the challenges associated with controlling tendon-driven robots.展开更多
Piezoelectric active vibration control holds paramount importance in space structures.An embedded piezoelectric actuator with a sandwich configuration is proposed,which enhances control accuracy by integrating various...Piezoelectric active vibration control holds paramount importance in space structures.An embedded piezoelectric actuator with a sandwich configuration is proposed,which enhances control accuracy by integrating various components.Firstly,the electromechanical coupling characteristics of the actuator are revealed,and the model is established.Secondly,the equivalent model of a cylindrical cantilever beam is investigated as the object,and the feasibility of the vibration control of the actuator is verified by simulation.Finally,the prototype comprised of two actuators,which respectively use the proposed embedded actuators for producing the vibration and suppressing the vibration,is developed,and the measurement system is constructed.Experimental results demonstrate the excellent control efficiency in two orthogonal directions,achieving a minimum vibration amplitude control of 0.00102 mm and a maximum vibration control of-42.74 d B.The integrated structure offers fast response,lightness,adaptability,and high control efficiency,which is conducive to enhancing the vibration control.展开更多
Smart elastomers have attracted great interest due to their excellent adaptability to changing environments and affinity to living organisms,characterized by their ability to undergo programmable deformations or prope...Smart elastomers have attracted great interest due to their excellent adaptability to changing environments and affinity to living organisms,characterized by their ability to undergo programmable deformations or property changes in response to external stimuli(e.g.,heat,light,pH,or electric/magnetic fields).They exhibit huge potential to drive the innovation of soft actuators,robotics,biomedical devices,and wearable electronics.This special issue of Chinese Journal of Polymer Science(CJPS)is dedicated to showcasing cutting-edge advancements in liquid crystal elastomers,hydrogels and the related soft actuators,with a focus on the design,synthesis,characterization,and application of stimuli-responsive soft elastomers and their integration into functional actuation systems.展开更多
The Electro–Hydrostatic Actuator(EHA)is applied to drive the control surface in flightcontrol system of more electric aircraft.In EHA,the Oil-Immersed Motor Pump(OMP)serves asthe core as a power assembly.However,the ...The Electro–Hydrostatic Actuator(EHA)is applied to drive the control surface in flightcontrol system of more electric aircraft.In EHA,the Oil-Immersed Motor Pump(OMP)serves asthe core as a power assembly.However,the compact integration of the OMP presents challenges inefficiently dissipating internal heat,leading to a performance degradation of the EHA due to ele-vated temperatures.Therefore,accurately modeling and predicting the internal thermal dynamicsof the OMP hold considerable significance for monitoring the operational condition of the EHA.In view of this,a modeling method considering cumulative thermal coupling was hereby proposed.Based on the proposed method,the thermal models of the motor and the pump were established,taking into account heat accumulation and transfer.Taking the leakage oil as the heat couplingpoint between the motor and the pump,the dynamic thermal coupling model of the OMP wasdeveloped,with the thermal characteristics of the oil considered.Additionally,the comparativeexperiments were conducted to illustrate the efficiency of the proposed model.The experimentalresults demonstrate that the proposed dynamic thermal coupling model accurately captured thethermal behavior of OMP,outperforming the static thermal parameter model.Overall,thisadvancement is crucial for effectively monitoring the health of EHA and ensuring flight safety.展开更多
Actuator faults can be critical in turbofan engines as they can lead to stall,surge,loss of thrust and failure of speed control.Thus,fault diagnosis of gas turbine actuators has attracted considerable attention,from b...Actuator faults can be critical in turbofan engines as they can lead to stall,surge,loss of thrust and failure of speed control.Thus,fault diagnosis of gas turbine actuators has attracted considerable attention,from both academia and industry.However,the extensive literature that exists on this topic does not address identifying the severity of actuator faults and focuses mainly on actuator fault detection and isolation.In addition,previous studies of actuator fault identification have not dealt with multiple concurrent faults in real time,especially when these are accompanied by sudden failures under dynamic conditions.This study develops component-level models for fault identification in four typical actuators used in high-bypass ratio turbofan engines under both dynamic and steady-state conditions and these are then integrated with the engine performance model developed by the authors.The research results reported here present a novel method of quantifying actuator faults using dynamic effect compensation.The maximum error for each actuator is less than0.06%and 0.07%,with average computational time of less than 0.0058 s and 0.0086 s for steady-state and transient cases,respectively.These results confirm that the proposed method can accurately and efficiently identify concurrent actuator fault for an engine operating under either transient or steady-state conditions,even in the case of a sudden malfunction.The research results emonstrate the potential benefit to emergency response capabilities by introducing this method of monitoring the health of aero engines.展开更多
To prepare a conductive polymer actuator with decent performance,a self-built experimental platform for the preparation of polypyrrole film is employed.One of the essential goals is to examine the mechanical character...To prepare a conductive polymer actuator with decent performance,a self-built experimental platform for the preparation of polypyrrole film is employed.One of the essential goals is to examine the mechanical characteristics of the actuator in the presence of various combinations of process parameters,combined with the orthogonal test method of"four factors and three levels".The bending and sensing characteristics of actuators of various sizes are methodically examined using a self-made bending polypyrrole actuator.The functional relationship between the bending displacement and the output voltage signal is established by studying the characteristics of the actuator sensor subjected to various degrees of bending.The experimental results reveal that the bending displacement of the actuator tip almost exhibits a linear variation as a function of length and width.When the voltage reaches 0.8 V,the bending speed of the actuator tends to be stable.Finally,the mechanical properties of the self-assembled polypyrrole actuator are verified by the design and fabrication of the microgripper.展开更多
Piezoelectric actuators are widely utilized in positioning systems to realize nano-scale resolution. However, the backward motion always generates for some piezoelectric actuators, which reduces the working efficiency...Piezoelectric actuators are widely utilized in positioning systems to realize nano-scale resolution. However, the backward motion always generates for some piezoelectric actuators, which reduces the working efficiency. Bionic motions have already been employed in the field of piezoelectric actuators to realize better performance. By imitating the movement form of seals, seal type piezoelectric actuator is capable to realize large operating strokes easily. Nevertheless, the conventional seal type piezoelectric actuator has a complicated structure and control system, which limits further applications. Hence, an improved bionic piezoelectric actuator is proposed to realize a long motion stroke and eliminate backward movement with a simplified structure and control method in this study. The composition and motion principle of the designed actuator are discussed, and the performance is investigated with simulations and experiments. Results confirm that the presented actuator effectively realizes the linear movement that has a large working stroke stably without backward motion. The smallest stepping displacement ΔL is 0.2 μm under 1 Hz and 50 V. The largest motion speed is 900 μm/s with 900 Hz and 120 V. The largest vertical and horizontal load are 250 g and 12 g, respectively. This work shows that the improved bionic piezoelectric actuator is feasible for eliminating backward motion and has a great working ability.展开更多
Dynamic positioning systems(DPS)on marine vessels exhibit actuator redundancy,with more actuators than degrees of freedom.A control allocation unit is employed to address this redundancy.Practical systems often featur...Dynamic positioning systems(DPS)on marine vessels exhibit actuator redundancy,with more actuators than degrees of freedom.A control allocation unit is employed to address this redundancy.Practical systems often feature time-varying elements in the effectiveness matrix due to factors such as changing operating conditions,nonlinearity,and disturbances.Additionally,not all thrusters require engagement at each step to counteract disturbances and maintain position.Control efforts can be generated by selecting some thrusters based on their instant effectiveness,while others can remain on standby.Therefore,introducing a control allocation method that calculates the effectiveness matrix online and selects the most efficient thrusters could be effective.This paper introduces a fault-tolerant control allocation strategy for DPS with a varying effectiveness matrix.Specifically,the investigation focuses on a case study featuring eight azimuth thrusters used on a drilling rig.At each time step,the effective matrix is calculated online,followed by the selection of the four most effective thrusters based on the actuator effectiveness index,with the four serving as backups in case of a fault.The proposed strategy has been validated through simulation results,demonstrating advantages such as robustness against changes in the effectiveness matrix and reduced energy usage by the thrusters.展开更多
This paper addresses the tracking control problem of a class of multiple-input–multiple-output nonlinear systems subject to actuator faults.Achieving a balance between input saturation and performance constraints,rat...This paper addresses the tracking control problem of a class of multiple-input–multiple-output nonlinear systems subject to actuator faults.Achieving a balance between input saturation and performance constraints,rather than conducting isolated analyses,especially in the presence of frequently encountered unknown actuator faults,becomes an interesting yet challenging problem.First,to enhance the tracking performance,Tunnel Prescribed Performance(TPP)is proposed to provide narrow tunnel-shape constraints instead of the common over-relaxed trumpet-shape performance constraints.A pair of non-negative signals produced by an auxiliary system is then integrated into TPP,resulting in Saturation-tolerant Prescribed Performance(SPP)with flexible performance boundaries that account for input saturation situations.Namely,SPP can appropriately relax TPP when needed and decrease the conservatism of control design.With the help of SPP,our developed Saturation-tolerant Prescribed Control(SPC)guarantees finite-time convergence while satisfying both input saturation and performance constraints,even under serious actuator faults.Simulations are conducted to illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed SPC.展开更多
Stimulus-responsive actuators are novel functional devices capable of sensing external stimuli and ex-hibiting specific deformation responses.MXene,owing to its unique 2D structure and efficient energy conversion effi...Stimulus-responsive actuators are novel functional devices capable of sensing external stimuli and ex-hibiting specific deformation responses.MXene,owing to its unique 2D structure and efficient energy conversion efficiency,has bridged the gap in traditional devices and shown great potential for multiple stimulus-responsive actuators.However,the drawbacks of pure MXene films,including susceptibility to oxidation and vulnerability to shear stress,hinder their applications.Through composite modification and structural design strategies,a three-layer structured MXene-carbon nanotubes hybrid film(tHCM)is fabri-cated,exhibiting a tensile strength and fracture strain of 153.8 MPa and 4.65%,respectively,representing improvements of 598.4%and 226.8%compared to the initial film.Meanwhile,the film maintains excel-lent stability demonstrating the enhancing effects of hydrogen bonds and densely packed structure.The hybrid films demonstrate unique and facile welding features due to splicing properties,enabling the for-mation of complex configurations.In terms of electro-/photo-thermal conversion performance,the hybrid film can reach a reasonably high temperature of 250℃at low voltage(2.5 V)and 110.6℃under 150 mW cm^(-2) infrared light.Leveraging the thermal expansion mismatch between tHCM and thermoplastic films,an integrated,flexible,and weldable actuator with unique electro/photo-response is developed,and vari-ous biomimetic driving applications,particularly,the light-mediated hierarchical transmission and precise motion along predetermined trajectory are realized.This work not only provides an effective strategy for modifying MXene composite films but also advances the design of novel actuators,offering broad appli-cation prospects in fields such as stimulus-responsive actuated robots and cargo transportation.展开更多
基金Financial support from the program of the National Natural Science Foundation of China(Grant no.52475059)Major Program of National Natural Science Founda-tion of China(NSFC)for Basic Theory and Key Technology of Tri-Co Robots(92248301)+3 种基金the Postdoctoral Research Foundation of China(No.2024M751167)the Young Elite Scientists Sponsorship Program by CAST(2023QNRC001)Jiangsu Province Natural Science Foundation(No.BK20240155)supported by the Nano&Material Technology Development Program through the National Research Foundation of Korea(NRF),funded by the Ministry of Science and ICT(RS2024-00406534,RS-2025-25442809)。
文摘Soft actuators,capable of producing mechanical work in response to external stimuli,have potential applications in robotics and exoskeletons.However,they face major challenges related to energy supply,especially in long-distance and miniaturized environments.Fuel-driven actuators offer a promising solution by enabling the conversion of chemical energy into mechanical energy,supporting selfsustaining operations.Chemical energy from fuel can be converted into mechanical energy either directly or indirectly through methods such as electron transfer-induced charge injection,structural changes,fuel-to-electricity conversion,fuel combustioninduced heat,or fuel-induced pneumatic actuation.This paper provides a comprehensive review of recent developments in fuel-powered actuators,covering their fundamental principles,advancements,and challenges.It concludes with an outlook for miniaturized and autonomous robots,highlighting the great potential of integrating fuel-powered actuators.
基金Supported by the Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Control Theory and Intelligent Systems (ZDSYS20220330161800001)the National Natural Science Foundation of China (62303207)the Guangdong Basic and Applied Basic Research Foundation (2024A1515010725)。
文摘This paper studies cooperative robust parallel operation of multiple actuators over an undirected communication graph.The plant is modeled as an uncertain linear system,and the actuators are linear and identical.Based on the internal model principle,a distributed dynamic output feedback control law is proposed to achieve both robust output regulation of the closed-loop system and plant input sharing among the actuators.A practical example of five motors cooperatively driving an uncertain shaft under an external load torque is presented to show the effectiveness of the proposed control law.
基金financially supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(No.52503154)Shandong Provincial Natural Science Foundation(Nos.ZR2022MB034 and ZR2025QC512)。
文摘Azobenzene-based polymer actuators show great promise for photoactuation owing to their unique photoisomerization behavior and tailorable molecular programmability.However,conventional systems are limited by inadequate mechanical robustness,self-healing,and recyclability,hindering their practical implementation.Herein,we present a high-performance azobenzene-functionalized polyurethane(AzoPU)elastomer actuator designed via molecular engineering of photoactive azobenzene moieties and dynamic disulfide bonds.AzoPU exhibits exceptional mechanical properties with retained performance after multiple reshaping cycles,enabled by well-engineered hard-soft segments and synergistic stress dissipation from weak covalent bonds/hierarchical hydrogen bonds.It achieves over 93%self-healing efficiency at room temperature owing to the synergistic interplay of disulfide bonds in the polymer backbone and intermolecular hydrogen bonds.Furthermore,it demonstrates remarkable light-triggered actuation behavior,achieving a phototropic bending angle exceeding 180°toward the light source within 45 s.To showcase its practical potential,proof-of-concept photoactuated devices with flower-,hook-,and gripper-like and local-orientation processed strip-shaped structures were fabricated,which exhibited rapid and reversible light-triggered deformation.This study proposes a novel strategy for the development of intelligent polymeric materials that integrate light responsiveness,self-healing,and recyclability,thus holding great promise for applications in flexible electronics,smart actuators,and sustainable functional materials.
基金co-supported by the National Science and Technology Major Project(No.J2019-Ⅲ-0010-0054)the National Natural Science Foundation of China(No.52336002)。
文摘The flight envelope of Air Turbo Rocket(ATR)engines is broader compared to conventional aero-engines,and designing a full-envelope controller using traditional methods poses significant challenges due to a burdensome design process.To address this issue,this paper proposes a self-learning neural network controller design method based on Reinforcement Learning(RL).Additionally,a method for predictive compensation and stability rewards is proposed to reduce the system oscillation caused by actuator delay.This approach simplifies the actuator to a firstorder inertial element exhibiting pure delay.A simulation environment for the ATR engineactuator system is first established.Based on this environment,a self-learning neural network controller using a predictive compensator and the Proximal Policy Optimization(PPO)algorithm is then developed.Furthermore,the temporal difference signals from the controller output are integrated into the reward function to enhance system stability.The proposed method is validated through numerical simulations and semi-physical experiments.The numerical simulation results demonstrate that the proposed method increases the system's tolerance to delays from 20 ms to 400 ms.Under an actuator delay of 400 ms,the average steady-state error remains less than0.1%,the overshoot is limited to 1%,and the settling time does not exceed 3 s.Moreover,compared to the traditional method,the proposed method exhibits higher adaptability to model errors and variations in flight conditions.In the conducted semi-physical simulation experiments,the proposed method achieves stable control of a real electric pump.
基金supported by the Science Center Program of National Natural Science Foundation of China under Grant 62188101the National Natural Science Foundation of China under Grant 62573265.
文摘This study develops an event-triggered control strategy utilizing the fully actuated system approach for nonlinear interconnected large-scale systems containing actuator failures.First,to reduce the complexity of the design process,we transform the studied system into the form of a fully actuated system through a state transformation.Then,to address the unknown nonlinear functions and actuator fault parameters,we employ neural networks and adaptive estimation techniques,respectively.Moreover,to reduce the control cost and improve the control efficiency,we introduce event-triggered inputs into the control strategy.It is proved by the Lyapunov stability analysis that all signals of the closed-loop system are bounded and the output of system eventually converge to a bounded region.The efficacy of the control approach is ultimately demonstrated via the simulation of an actual machine feeding system.
基金Supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China(Grant Nos.52475035,U23A20615)Zhejiang Provincial Natural Science Foundation of China(Grant No.LMS25E050003)+2 种基金Open Funds of the State Key Laboratory of Fluid Power and Mechatronic Systems at Zhejiang University of China(Grant No.GZKF-202419)Fundamental Research Funds of Zhejiang Sci-Tech University of China(Grant No.24242115-Y)the Zhejiang Provincial General Scientific Research Projects Fund of China(Grant No.Y202353093).
文摘Soft actuators based on cellulose with highly electro-responsive properties have attracted significant attention in the fields of wearable devices,medical and healthcare devices,soft robots,and human-computer interactions.However,existing cellulose-based soft actuators still need to be improved in terms of actuation displacement,bending strain,and driving frequency.Herein,we report a highly responsive ionic actuator using carboxylated cellulose nanofibers from wood pulp(CNFp),graphene nanosheets(GN),and ionic liquids(IL).The CNFp-IL-GN actuator exhibited a large specific capacitance of 749.11 mF/cm^(2)under a 25 mV/s scan rate,a large mechanical displacement(25 mm peak-to-peak)under 2.0 V at 0.1 Hz,a broad actuation frequency(0.1 to 10 Hz),and long working stability.Furthermore,bioinspired applications,including bionic dragonflies and artificial soft-touch fingers,have been demonstrated.These results demonstrate that the proposed actuator is a significant method for advancing soft actuators,artificial muscles,and bioinspired robots.
基金The Central Government Guides Local Foundation for Science and Technology Development(Grant No.YDZJSX2024B004).
文摘The soft actuator is characterized by high safety,flexibility,and adaptability.It is capable of both active and passive defor-mations.This paper presents a discrete degree of freedom(DOF)method for soft actuators to reveal DOF characteristics.The method draws on the superposition mechanism of the deformation characteristics of the sarcomere in the skeletal muscles of living organisms.Firstly,the multi-DOF deformation characteristics of the soft actuator are discretized into superimposed combinations of single-DOF micro-units.Then,the soft actuator was determined to contain deformation characteristics such as extension-contraction,bending,and twisting.Eighteen types of micro-units with basic deforma-tion characteristics were obtained depending on the axis and orientation.Further,the mapping relationship between the combination of micro-units and the motion characteristics of the soft actuator based on the GF set theory was established.Finally,an active-passive DOF co-structured soft actuator(APCSA)was developed.The graphical approach analyzes the experimental results,and it can be concluded that active and passive DOFs can coexist in the composite deformation of the soft actuator.
基金the National Natural Science Foundation of China(22175099,22205116,22301147)National Key Research and Development Program of China(2021YFC2102100)+1 种基金Frontiers Science Center for New Organic Matter of Nankai University(63181206)111 Project(B12015).
文摘Fabricating macroscale smart actuators that can convert light energy into other forms of energy,especially mechanical and electrical energy,is of great significance.Herein,a simple and efficient 4D printed method for fabricating photomechanical actuators based on micro/nano-scale crystals is developed.The high versatility and generality of this method are successfully demonstrated using nine different types of photoresponsive crystalline actuators,including acylhydrazone-,anthracene-,olefin-,and azobenzene-based molecular crystals and covalent organic frameworks(COFs).The low-cost neutral silicone sealant elastomer is first chosen as the photomechanical 4D printing matrix.Notably,these actuators can be used to perform bionic motions(the first windmills spin using crystalline material,dragonflies fly,and sunflowers bloom)under the stimulation of visible light and can realize energy conversion from mechanical energy into electricity when coupled with a piezoelectric membrane.This work provides new insights into the design and manufacturing of smart photomechanical actuators and electricity generators and expands the application scope of COFs.
基金National Natural Science Foundation of China(Grant No.61903157)the Foundation of State Key Laboratory of Robotics(Grand No.2024-O08).
文摘Microrobotic systems are emerging as transformative technology for minimally invasive medicine,driven by innovations in actuation mechanisms,advanced fabrication paradigms,and multifunctional system integration.This comprehensive review analyzes the evolution of microrobotic technologies through three critical dimensions:(1)actuation modalities,including magnetic,optical,acoustic,chemical,and biological actuation,with a focus on the synergistic advantages of hybrid actuation strategies in complex internal physiological environments;(2)Fabrication methods cover technolo-gies such as photolithography,microinjection molding,self-assembly,and 3D printing,emphasizing innovative strategies involving multi-technology integration and collaborative manufacturing of bio/non-bio hybrid materials;(3)Internal phys-iological applications involve disease diagnosis,targeted drug delivery,minimally invasive surgery,tissue engineering,and cell manipulation,highlighting the broad prospects of microrobots in precision medicine.Despite remarkable progress,critical challenges remain,including low actuation efficiency,as seen in acoustic systems,limited biocompatibility,exem-plified by the toxicity of hydrogen peroxide in chemical actuation,delayed clinical translation,and other related challenges that must be addressed to advance the field.
基金supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China under Grant no.52475067.
文摘This paper presents an untethered pneumatic soft robot which can crawl both in horizontal and vertical pipes with different sizes and cross sections.This robot uses modular origami inspired soft-rigid hybrid actuator to produce telescoping and anchoring movements powered by vacuum pressure.The introduction of grooves to valley crease significantly lowers the full contraction vacuum pressure and improves the response,allowing the system can be driven by an onboard micro vacuum pump,enabling the possibility of miniaturization,integration,and untethered operation of the robot.A series of crawling experiments in pipes with different sizes and cross sections constructed by acrylic are conducted to validate the crawling performance of the robot.Within square cross-section pipes,the robot can achieve a velocity of 9.4 mm/s in horizontal crawling and 7.7 mm/s in vertical upward crawling.For horizontal crawling in circular pipes,it can reach a velocity of 8.0 mm/s.When fully charged,the robot can crawl for 40 min with a mileage of 16.649 m,which is sufficient for most drainage and industrial pipelines detection tasks.The robot demonstrates excellent endurance and speed performance that exceed most existing untethered soft pipe crawling robots.
基金supported in part by the National Key R&D Program of China under Grant 2024YFB4707900the National Natural Science Foundation of China under Grant 91948302 and Grant 52021003.
文摘Tendon-driven robots have distinct advantages in high-dynamic performance motion and high-degree-of-freedom manipulation.However,these robots face challenges related to control complexity,intricate tendon drive paths,and tendon slackness.In this study,the authors present a novel modular tendon-driven actuator design that integrates a series elastic element.The actuator incorporates a unique magnetic position sensing technology that enables observation of the length and tension of the tendon and features an exceptionally compact design.The modular architecture of the tendon-driven actuator addresses the complexity of tendon drive paths,while the tension observation functionality mitigates slackness issues.The design and modeling of the actuator are described in this paper,and a series of tests are conducted to validate the simulation model and to test the performance of the proposed actuator.The model can be used for training robot control neural networks based on simulation,thereby overcoming the challenges associated with controlling tendon-driven robots.
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(Nos.52275022,52175015 and U2037603)the Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu Province,China(Nos.BK20222011 and BK20230093)the State Key Laboratory of Mechanics and Control for Aerospace Structures,China(No.MCAS-S-0223G01)。
文摘Piezoelectric active vibration control holds paramount importance in space structures.An embedded piezoelectric actuator with a sandwich configuration is proposed,which enhances control accuracy by integrating various components.Firstly,the electromechanical coupling characteristics of the actuator are revealed,and the model is established.Secondly,the equivalent model of a cylindrical cantilever beam is investigated as the object,and the feasibility of the vibration control of the actuator is verified by simulation.Finally,the prototype comprised of two actuators,which respectively use the proposed embedded actuators for producing the vibration and suppressing the vibration,is developed,and the measurement system is constructed.Experimental results demonstrate the excellent control efficiency in two orthogonal directions,achieving a minimum vibration amplitude control of 0.00102 mm and a maximum vibration control of-42.74 d B.The integrated structure offers fast response,lightness,adaptability,and high control efficiency,which is conducive to enhancing the vibration control.
文摘Smart elastomers have attracted great interest due to their excellent adaptability to changing environments and affinity to living organisms,characterized by their ability to undergo programmable deformations or property changes in response to external stimuli(e.g.,heat,light,pH,or electric/magnetic fields).They exhibit huge potential to drive the innovation of soft actuators,robotics,biomedical devices,and wearable electronics.This special issue of Chinese Journal of Polymer Science(CJPS)is dedicated to showcasing cutting-edge advancements in liquid crystal elastomers,hydrogels and the related soft actuators,with a focus on the design,synthesis,characterization,and application of stimuli-responsive soft elastomers and their integration into functional actuation systems.
基金supported by the National Key R&D Program of China(No.2021YFB2011300)the National Natural Science Foundation of China(Nos.52275044,U2233212)。
文摘The Electro–Hydrostatic Actuator(EHA)is applied to drive the control surface in flightcontrol system of more electric aircraft.In EHA,the Oil-Immersed Motor Pump(OMP)serves asthe core as a power assembly.However,the compact integration of the OMP presents challenges inefficiently dissipating internal heat,leading to a performance degradation of the EHA due to ele-vated temperatures.Therefore,accurately modeling and predicting the internal thermal dynamicsof the OMP hold considerable significance for monitoring the operational condition of the EHA.In view of this,a modeling method considering cumulative thermal coupling was hereby proposed.Based on the proposed method,the thermal models of the motor and the pump were established,taking into account heat accumulation and transfer.Taking the leakage oil as the heat couplingpoint between the motor and the pump,the dynamic thermal coupling model of the OMP wasdeveloped,with the thermal characteristics of the oil considered.Additionally,the comparativeexperiments were conducted to illustrate the efficiency of the proposed model.The experimentalresults demonstrate that the proposed dynamic thermal coupling model accurately captured thethermal behavior of OMP,outperforming the static thermal parameter model.Overall,thisadvancement is crucial for effectively monitoring the health of EHA and ensuring flight safety.
基金support by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(Grant No.52402520)。
文摘Actuator faults can be critical in turbofan engines as they can lead to stall,surge,loss of thrust and failure of speed control.Thus,fault diagnosis of gas turbine actuators has attracted considerable attention,from both academia and industry.However,the extensive literature that exists on this topic does not address identifying the severity of actuator faults and focuses mainly on actuator fault detection and isolation.In addition,previous studies of actuator fault identification have not dealt with multiple concurrent faults in real time,especially when these are accompanied by sudden failures under dynamic conditions.This study develops component-level models for fault identification in four typical actuators used in high-bypass ratio turbofan engines under both dynamic and steady-state conditions and these are then integrated with the engine performance model developed by the authors.The research results reported here present a novel method of quantifying actuator faults using dynamic effect compensation.The maximum error for each actuator is less than0.06%and 0.07%,with average computational time of less than 0.0058 s and 0.0086 s for steady-state and transient cases,respectively.These results confirm that the proposed method can accurately and efficiently identify concurrent actuator fault for an engine operating under either transient or steady-state conditions,even in the case of a sudden malfunction.The research results emonstrate the potential benefit to emergency response capabilities by introducing this method of monitoring the health of aero engines.
基金Funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of Hunan Province,Chinal(No.2021JJ60012)。
文摘To prepare a conductive polymer actuator with decent performance,a self-built experimental platform for the preparation of polypyrrole film is employed.One of the essential goals is to examine the mechanical characteristics of the actuator in the presence of various combinations of process parameters,combined with the orthogonal test method of"four factors and three levels".The bending and sensing characteristics of actuators of various sizes are methodically examined using a self-made bending polypyrrole actuator.The functional relationship between the bending displacement and the output voltage signal is established by studying the characteristics of the actuator sensor subjected to various degrees of bending.The experimental results reveal that the bending displacement of the actuator tip almost exhibits a linear variation as a function of length and width.When the voltage reaches 0.8 V,the bending speed of the actuator tends to be stable.Finally,the mechanical properties of the self-assembled polypyrrole actuator are verified by the design and fabrication of the microgripper.
基金supported by The Key Science and Technology Plan Project of Jinhua City,China:2023-3-084,2023-2-011Zhejiang Provincial"Revealing the list and taking command"Project of China KYH06Y22349Open Fund Project of Key Laboratory of CNC Equipment reliability,Ministry of Education JLU-cncr-202407.
文摘Piezoelectric actuators are widely utilized in positioning systems to realize nano-scale resolution. However, the backward motion always generates for some piezoelectric actuators, which reduces the working efficiency. Bionic motions have already been employed in the field of piezoelectric actuators to realize better performance. By imitating the movement form of seals, seal type piezoelectric actuator is capable to realize large operating strokes easily. Nevertheless, the conventional seal type piezoelectric actuator has a complicated structure and control system, which limits further applications. Hence, an improved bionic piezoelectric actuator is proposed to realize a long motion stroke and eliminate backward movement with a simplified structure and control method in this study. The composition and motion principle of the designed actuator are discussed, and the performance is investigated with simulations and experiments. Results confirm that the presented actuator effectively realizes the linear movement that has a large working stroke stably without backward motion. The smallest stepping displacement ΔL is 0.2 μm under 1 Hz and 50 V. The largest motion speed is 900 μm/s with 900 Hz and 120 V. The largest vertical and horizontal load are 250 g and 12 g, respectively. This work shows that the improved bionic piezoelectric actuator is feasible for eliminating backward motion and has a great working ability.
文摘Dynamic positioning systems(DPS)on marine vessels exhibit actuator redundancy,with more actuators than degrees of freedom.A control allocation unit is employed to address this redundancy.Practical systems often feature time-varying elements in the effectiveness matrix due to factors such as changing operating conditions,nonlinearity,and disturbances.Additionally,not all thrusters require engagement at each step to counteract disturbances and maintain position.Control efforts can be generated by selecting some thrusters based on their instant effectiveness,while others can remain on standby.Therefore,introducing a control allocation method that calculates the effectiveness matrix online and selects the most efficient thrusters could be effective.This paper introduces a fault-tolerant control allocation strategy for DPS with a varying effectiveness matrix.Specifically,the investigation focuses on a case study featuring eight azimuth thrusters used on a drilling rig.At each time step,the effective matrix is calculated online,followed by the selection of the four most effective thrusters based on the actuator effectiveness index,with the four serving as backups in case of a fault.The proposed strategy has been validated through simulation results,demonstrating advantages such as robustness against changes in the effectiveness matrix and reduced energy usage by the thrusters.
基金supported by the National Research Foundation Singapore under its AI Singapore Programme(Award Number:[AISG2-GC-2023-007]).
文摘This paper addresses the tracking control problem of a class of multiple-input–multiple-output nonlinear systems subject to actuator faults.Achieving a balance between input saturation and performance constraints,rather than conducting isolated analyses,especially in the presence of frequently encountered unknown actuator faults,becomes an interesting yet challenging problem.First,to enhance the tracking performance,Tunnel Prescribed Performance(TPP)is proposed to provide narrow tunnel-shape constraints instead of the common over-relaxed trumpet-shape performance constraints.A pair of non-negative signals produced by an auxiliary system is then integrated into TPP,resulting in Saturation-tolerant Prescribed Performance(SPP)with flexible performance boundaries that account for input saturation situations.Namely,SPP can appropriately relax TPP when needed and decrease the conservatism of control design.With the help of SPP,our developed Saturation-tolerant Prescribed Control(SPC)guarantees finite-time convergence while satisfying both input saturation and performance constraints,even under serious actuator faults.Simulations are conducted to illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed SPC.
基金support provided by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(No.52002324)the Hong Kong Scholars Program(Nos.XJ2021073 and PolyU YZ4V)the Research Grants Council of Hong Kong GRF(No.15303123).
文摘Stimulus-responsive actuators are novel functional devices capable of sensing external stimuli and ex-hibiting specific deformation responses.MXene,owing to its unique 2D structure and efficient energy conversion efficiency,has bridged the gap in traditional devices and shown great potential for multiple stimulus-responsive actuators.However,the drawbacks of pure MXene films,including susceptibility to oxidation and vulnerability to shear stress,hinder their applications.Through composite modification and structural design strategies,a three-layer structured MXene-carbon nanotubes hybrid film(tHCM)is fabri-cated,exhibiting a tensile strength and fracture strain of 153.8 MPa and 4.65%,respectively,representing improvements of 598.4%and 226.8%compared to the initial film.Meanwhile,the film maintains excel-lent stability demonstrating the enhancing effects of hydrogen bonds and densely packed structure.The hybrid films demonstrate unique and facile welding features due to splicing properties,enabling the for-mation of complex configurations.In terms of electro-/photo-thermal conversion performance,the hybrid film can reach a reasonably high temperature of 250℃at low voltage(2.5 V)and 110.6℃under 150 mW cm^(-2) infrared light.Leveraging the thermal expansion mismatch between tHCM and thermoplastic films,an integrated,flexible,and weldable actuator with unique electro/photo-response is developed,and vari-ous biomimetic driving applications,particularly,the light-mediated hierarchical transmission and precise motion along predetermined trajectory are realized.This work not only provides an effective strategy for modifying MXene composite films but also advances the design of novel actuators,offering broad appli-cation prospects in fields such as stimulus-responsive actuated robots and cargo transportation.
