TY - GEN
T1 - MagBot
T2 - 2024 IEEE/ASME International Conference on Advanced Intelligent Mechatronics, AIM 2024
AU - Knospler, Joshua
AU - Xue, Wei
AU - Trkov, Mitja
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2024 IEEE.
PY - 2024
Y1 - 2024
N2 - Soft robots are growing in demand due to their inherent soft nature, compliance, and versatility. These attributes make them ideal for a large range of applications. To further expand the applications of soft robotics, we present a reconfigurable modular soft robotic actuator capable of easy reconfigurations and multi-actuator assembly for versatile tasks using a single actuator design. In this paper, we introduce a novel inter-unit connection mechanism that expands the reconfiguration capabilities of our soft modular robots. The mechanism includes magnets that can semi-permanently reverse their polarity on demand to achieve tunable magnetic connections without the need to supply constant electric current. The mechanism is made from a flexible material allowing articulated connections, which enables complex spatial configuration in a multi-actuator assembly. In addition, the mechanism allows various inter-unit connections, including air, mechanical, and electrical, that reduce the complexity of operation and reconfigurability. These connections enable a multi-actuator assembly to share a single actuation source, that simplifies the design and increases the functionality. We characterize the mechanical performance of individual actuators and the connection mechanism through experiments. Examples of structural configurations are presented to demonstrate the actuators' reconfiguration capabilities.
AB - Soft robots are growing in demand due to their inherent soft nature, compliance, and versatility. These attributes make them ideal for a large range of applications. To further expand the applications of soft robotics, we present a reconfigurable modular soft robotic actuator capable of easy reconfigurations and multi-actuator assembly for versatile tasks using a single actuator design. In this paper, we introduce a novel inter-unit connection mechanism that expands the reconfiguration capabilities of our soft modular robots. The mechanism includes magnets that can semi-permanently reverse their polarity on demand to achieve tunable magnetic connections without the need to supply constant electric current. The mechanism is made from a flexible material allowing articulated connections, which enables complex spatial configuration in a multi-actuator assembly. In addition, the mechanism allows various inter-unit connections, including air, mechanical, and electrical, that reduce the complexity of operation and reconfigurability. These connections enable a multi-actuator assembly to share a single actuation source, that simplifies the design and increases the functionality. We characterize the mechanical performance of individual actuators and the connection mechanism through experiments. Examples of structural configurations are presented to demonstrate the actuators' reconfiguration capabilities.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85203291428&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85203291428&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1109/AIM55361.2024.10637035
DO - 10.1109/AIM55361.2024.10637035
M3 - Conference contribution
AN - SCOPUS:85203291428
T3 - IEEE/ASME International Conference on Advanced Intelligent Mechatronics, AIM
SP - 1284
EP - 1289
BT - 2024 IEEE International Conference on Advanced Intelligent Mechatronics, AIM 2024
PB - Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Inc.
Y2 - 15 July 2024 through 19 July 2024
ER -