A soft actuator-based lung profile unidirectional deformation control structure for a soft robot lung

Abstract

The application discloses a kind of based on soft driver's lung profile one-way deformation control structure of soft robot of simulation lung, the circumferential of central fixed seat is evenly distributed with pneu-net soft driver connected by connector;Between each connector and central fixed seat, one bellows driver is fixedly connected;Trachea is communicated with pneu-net soft driver and bellows driver;Control structure is shown by the radial telescopic characteristics of the radial deformation of lung and the boundary curvature of lung quality of lung by the bending characteristics of the lung of the bellows driver and the pneu-net soft driver respectively by applying air pressure to bellows driver.It is effectively simulated by the driving mode of the above control structure pneumatics when the profile of lung one-way deformation, by multiple different structure parameters this kind of soft driver constitutes complete soft robot of simulation lung, on the basis of being able to accurately control model deformation, be applied to the deformation prediction of lung deformation and accurately predict lung tumor movement space.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application relates to the technical field of bionic soft robot, in particular to a lung profile one-way deformation control structure of a bionic lung soft robot based on a soft driver. BACKGROUND

[0002] The research of biological soft tissue structure promotes the development of soft robots, which have a biological tissue structure and can realize complex movements such as bending, elongation and curling of biological organisms. As an important respiratory organ of the human body, the lung pieces will expand and contract accordingly when inhaling and exhaling. The study of the deformation mechanism of the lung during breathing is particularly important for the treatment of lung-related diseases and the concern for human health.

[0003] Lung cancer is a malignant tumor originating from the mucosa or glands of the bronchus of the lung. It has the fastest growth rate of incidence and mortality, and is one of the most dangerous malignant tumors to human health and life. In the past 50 years, many countries have reported that the incidence and mortality of lung cancer have increased significantly. At present, the mainstream methods for predicting lung tumors include imaging examination, tissue biopsy, blood marker detection, gene detection and artificial intelligence assisted detection, etc. Doctors will choose the appropriate prediction method for the detection and diagnosis of lung tumors according to the condition and clinical needs. Radiotherapy requires high accuracy in protecting healthy organs and destroying tumors, and tumors near the diaphragm move constantly during treatment, greatly increasing the difficulty of radiotherapy. In order to measure and minimize the impact of respiratory motion on lung deformation, a deformable lung profile one-way deformation control structure is needed to simulate the deformation of the human lung during breathing. SUMMARY

[0004] In order to simulate the deformation of the human lung during breathing, the present application provides a lung profile one-way deformation control structure of a bionic lung soft robot based on a soft driver, which effectively simulates the profile of the lung during one-way deformation by a pneumatic driving method. A complete bionic lung soft robot is formed by a plurality of such drivers with different structural parameters, which can be used for deformation prediction of the lung and accurate prediction of the movement space of the lung tumor on the basis of accurate control of the model deformation.

[0005] The present application adopts the following specific technical solutions:

[0006] A lung profile one-way deformation control structure of a bionic lung soft robot based on a soft driver, the control structure comprising a central fixed seat, a bellows driver, a pneu-net soft driver, a connector and an air tube;

[0007] At least three pneu-net soft drivers are uniformly distributed around the central fixed seat;

[0008] Along the circumference of the central mounting base, adjacent pneu-net software drivers are fixedly connected to each other via the connector;

[0009] A bellows driver is fixedly connected between each connector and the central fixing seat; the bellows drivers extend radially along the central fixing seat.

[0010] The trachea includes a first trachea that is connected to the pneu-net software driver in a one-to-one correspondence and a second trachea that is connected to the bellows driver in a one-to-one correspondence.

[0011] The control structure simulates the radial deformation of the lung and the boundary curvature of the lung tissue by applying air pressure to the bellows actuator and applying air pressure to the pneu-net software actuator, respectively.

[0012] Furthermore, the pneu-net software driver includes a non-stretchable layer and multiple elastic air cavity structures;

[0013] Multiple elastic air cavity structures are connected in series and fixedly connected to the side of the non-extended layer away from the intermediate fixed base;

[0014] A first air hole is provided in the middle of the side of the non-extended layer facing the intermediate fixing seat;

[0015] The first trachea is bonded to the non-stretchable layer and is connected to the first pore.

[0016] Furthermore, the multiple elastic air cavity structures have different dimensional parameters to achieve bending deformation with varying curvature under the same air pressure.

[0017] Furthermore, the central fixing base is a cylinder with plug-in sockets evenly distributed around its circumference, each corresponding to one of the bellows driver, and through holes corresponding to one of the pneu-net software drivers are provided between adjacent plug-in sockets.

[0018] The inner end of the bellows driver is fixedly installed in the socket;

[0019] A first air tube, which is connected to the pneu-net software driver, is inserted through the through hole.

[0020] Furthermore, the bellows actuator is a thin-shell structure with a corrugated structure and a second vent is provided at the inner end;

[0021] One end of the second trachea is bonded to the inner end and communicates with the second vent.

[0022] Furthermore, the connector has a mounting groove for mounting the bellows driver in the middle of the side surface facing the intermediate fixing seat, and symmetrically arranged plug slots for connecting the pneu-net software driver on both sides of the mounting groove.

[0023] The outer end of the bellows driver is inserted into the mounting slot;

[0024] The end of the pneu-net software driver is inserted into the connector slot.

[0025] Furthermore, the connector is made of silicone rubber to ensure a smooth transition of curvature at the connection point under the coupling deformation of the bellows driver and the pneu-net software driver.

[0026] Furthermore, the bellows driver is bonded to the center mounting base and the connector, and the pneu-net software driver is bonded to the connector.

[0027] Furthermore, it also includes tracheal fixation rings;

[0028] The tracheal fixation ring is a circular plate-shaped structure with a perforation in the middle;

[0029] The outer walls of the trachea pass tangentially through the perforation.

[0030] Furthermore, it also includes an air source connected to the trachea.

[0031] Beneficial effects:

[0032] The lung contour unidirectional deformation control structure of the present invention employs two actuators with different deformation forms for coupled deformation, including a bellows actuator with radial expansion characteristics and a pneu-net software actuator with circumferential bending characteristics. The radial expansion characteristics of the bellows actuator simulate the radial deformation of the lung, and the bending characteristics of the pneu-net software actuator simulate the boundary curvature of the lung tissue. Therefore, the above-mentioned lung contour unidirectional deformation control structure can simulate the unidirectional deformation mechanism of the lung during breathing through a human tissue-like dual-actuator software structure. It can effectively simulate the contour of the lung during unidirectional deformation through pneumatic drive. Based on the ability to accurately control the deformation of the model, it can be applied to the deformation prediction of lung deformation and the accurate prediction of the movement space of lung tumors. At the same time, it can also simulate other similar shapes or contours within the deformation range of the actuator. Attached Figure Description

[0033] Figure 1 This is a three-dimensional structural schematic diagram of the lung contour unidirectional deformation control structure of the present invention.

[0034] Figure 2 A three-dimensional structural diagram of the central fixing base;

[0035] Figure 3 This is a cross-sectional view of a bellows driver.

[0036] Figure 4 A cross-sectional view of the pneu-net software driver;

[0037] Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of the three-dimensional structure of the connector;

[0038] Figure 6 A three-dimensional structural diagram of the tracheal fixation ring;

[0039] Figure 7 This is a schematic diagram illustrating the unidirectional deformation and bending of the lung using the lung contour unidirectional deformation control structure of the present invention.

[0040] Among them, 1-center fixing seat, 2-bellows actuator, 3-pneu-net software actuator, 4-connector, 5-first air tube, 6-second air tube, 7-air tube fixing ring, 11-plug socket, 12-through hole, 21-inner end, 22-outer end, 23-second air hole, 31-non-extended layer, 32-elastic air cavity structure, 33-first air hole, 41-mounting groove, 42-plug groove, 71-perforation Detailed Implementation

[0041] The technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of the present invention, and not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0042] like Figure 1 As shown in the diagram, this embodiment provides a unidirectional deformation control structure for the lung contour of a lung-like soft robot based on soft actuators. This control structure includes a central fixed base 1, a bellows actuator 2, a pneu-net (pneumatic networks) soft actuator 3, a connector 4, and tracheas. In this embodiment, a unidirectional deformation control structure for the lung contour with three pneu-net soft actuators 3, three bellows actuators 2, three connectors 4, three first tracheas 5, and three second tracheas 6 is used as an example. In actual use, the number of pneu-net soft actuators 3 can be three, four, five, or more, and is not limited to the three in this embodiment.

[0043] Three pneu-net soft actuators 3 are evenly distributed around the central fixing base 1. Adjacent pneu-net soft actuators 3 are fixedly connected via connectors 4 along the circumference of the central fixing base 1. The end of one pneu-net soft actuator 3 is adjacent to the end of another pneu-net soft actuator 3 and fixedly connected as a single unit via connectors 4. Three connectors 4 connect the three pneu-net soft actuators 3. To ensure a smooth transition of curvature at the connection point under the coupling deformation of the bellows actuator 2 and the pneu-net soft actuator 3, the connectors 4 are made of silicone rubber. The silicone rubber connectors 4 can both connect the pneu-net soft actuators 3 and ensure a smooth curvature at the connection point, avoiding the problem of the connection point being unable to deform due to high material rigidity. In use, the central fixing base 1 can be fixed first.

[0044] A bellows driver 2 is fixedly connected between each connector 4 and the central fixed base 1; the bellows drivers 2 extend radially along the central fixed base 1; the three connectors 4 are respectively connected to the central fixed base 1 through a bellows driver 2, and the connectors 4 connected to the bellows driver 2 move radially along the central fixed base 1 by the extension and retraction of the bellows driver 2, thereby realizing the radial adjustment of the end of the pneu-net software driver 3.

[0045] The trachea includes a first trachea 5 that is connected to the pneu-net software driver 3 in a one-to-one correspondence and a second trachea 6 that is connected to the bellows driver 2 in a one-to-one correspondence; such as Figure 1 and Figure 7 As shown, each of the three pneu-net soft actuators 3 is connected to a first air pipe 5, which is used to supply gas into the pneu-net soft actuator 3, causing it to deform by supplying gas into the pneu-net soft actuator 3; each of the three bellows actuators 2 is connected to a second air pipe 6, which is used to supply gas into the bellows actuator 2, causing it to expand and contract radially along the central fixed base 1 by supplying gas into the bellows actuator 2.

[0046] The control structure simulates the radial deformation of the lung and the boundary curvature of the lung tissue by applying air pressure to the bellows driver 2 and applying air pressure to the pneu-net software driver 3, respectively.

[0047] The aforementioned unidirectional lung contour deformation control structure employs two actuators with different deformation forms for coupled deformation: a bellows actuator 2 with radial expansion characteristics and a pneu-net software actuator 3 with circumferential bending characteristics. The radial expansion characteristics of the bellows actuator 2 simulate the radial deformation of the lung, while the bending characteristics of the pneu-net software actuator 3 simulate the boundary curvature of the lung tissue. The deformation degree of the two actuators can be controlled by gas pressure. Therefore, the aforementioned unidirectional lung contour deformation control structure, through a human tissue-like dual-actuator software structure, can simulate the unidirectional deformation mechanism of the lung during respiration. The pneumatic drive can effectively simulate the contour of the lung during unidirectional deformation. Based on the ability to accurately control model deformation, it can be applied to the deformation prediction of lung deformation and the accurate prediction of lung tumor motion space. At the same time, it can also simulate other similar shapes or contours within the deformation range of the actuators.

[0048] In one specific implementation, such as Figure 4 As shown, the pneu-net software driver 3 includes a non-extended layer 31 and multiple elastic air cavity structures 32; the multiple elastic air cavity structures 32 are connected in series and fixedly connected to the side of the non-extended layer 31 facing away from the intermediate fixed seat, and the elastic air cavity structures 32 and the non-extended layer 31 are integrally formed; the multiple elastic air cavity structures 32 have different dimensional parameters, which are used to achieve bending deformation with varying curvature under the same air pressure; a first air hole 33 is provided in the middle of the side of the non-extended layer 31 facing the intermediate fixed seat; the first air hole 33 is connected to the corresponding first air pipe 5, and the other end of the first air pipe 5 is connected to the air source. The pneu-net software driver 3 is bonded to the connector 4; the first air tube 5 is bonded to the non-extended layer 31 and communicates with the first air hole 33; the elastic air cavity structure 32 has an air passage communicating with the first air hole 33, and the gas delivered by the first air tube 5 causes it to bend and deform. At the same time, by changing the outer dimensions and internal air passage geometric parameters of the elastic air cavity structure 32, the deformation curvature of the elastic air cavity structure 32 can be changed, thereby realizing the variable curvature bending motion of the same pneu-net software driver 3 under the same air pressure.

[0049] like Figure 2As shown, the central fixing base 1 is a cylinder with an internal cavity, and is circumferentially distributed with plug-in seats 11 corresponding to the bellows driver 2. Between adjacent plug-in seats 11, there are through holes 12 corresponding to the pneu-net software driver 3. That is, the central fixing base 1 has three plug-in seats 11 and three through holes 12 circumferentially distributed, with the plug-in seats 11 and through holes 12 alternating sequentially. The bellows driver 2 has an inner end 21 connected to the central fixing base 1 and an outer end 22 connected to the connector 4. The inner end 21 of the bellows driver 2 is fixedly installed in the plug-in seat 11, and the outer end 22 is fixedly connected to the connector 4. A first air tube 5 connected to the pneu-net software driver 3 passes through the through hole 12. Each through hole 12 is opposite to one pneu-net software driver 3 and is used to pass through the first air tube 5 connected to the pneu-net software driver 3. The bellows driver 2 is bonded to both the central fixing base 1 and the connector 4.

[0050] like Figure 3 As shown, the bellows actuator 2 is a thin-shell structure with a corrugated structure and a second air hole 23 is provided at the inner end 21; one end of the second air pipe 6 is bonded to the inner end 21 and communicates with the second air hole 23, and the other end of the second air pipe 6 is communicated with the air source. Gas is delivered into the bellows actuator 2 through the second air pipe 6, driving the bellows actuator 2 to extend and retract radially, thereby driving the connector 4 to move the end of the pneu-net software actuator 3.

[0051] like Figure 5 As shown, connector 4 has a mounting groove 41 for mounting the bellows driver 2 in the middle of its surface facing the central fixing seat, and symmetrical insertion grooves 42 for connecting the pneu-net software driver 3 are arranged on both sides of the mounting groove 41; the mounting groove 41 is a circular groove; the insertion groove 42 is a rectangular groove; the outer end 22 of the bellows driver 2 is inserted into the mounting groove 41; the end of the pneu-net software driver 3 is inserted into the insertion groove 42. The bellows driver 2 and connector 4, as well as the pneu-net software driver 3 and connector 4, are connected by adhesive bonding.

[0052] The aforementioned unidirectional deformation control structure for the lung contour may also include a tracheal fixation ring 7 and an air source connected to the trachea; such as Figure 6 As shown, the trachea fixing ring 7 is a circular plate-shaped structure with a perforation 71 in the middle. There can be six perforations 71, that is, three perforations 71 for the first trachea 5 and three perforations 71 for the second trachea 6 are respectively provided in the middle of the circular plate-shaped structure of the trachea fixing ring 7. Only one first trachea 5 or second trachea 6 is inserted into each perforation 71; alternatively, it can be as follows... Figure 6Multiple perforations 71 are interconnected, that is, the perforation 71 used for the first air tube 5 and the perforation 71 used for the second air tube 6 are designed to form a single integral perforation 71; for example Figure 7 As shown, the outer walls of the trachea pass tangentially through the perforation 71. The perforation 71, reserved in the middle of the trachea fixing ring 7 for supplying air to the two actuators, and the tangentiality of the outer walls of the trachea, helps ensure a neat and orderly arrangement of the trachea. Adding an air source also improves the independence of the unidirectional deformation control structure of the lung contour, freeing it from the limitations of the working environment. Furthermore, a pressure control device can be installed on each trachea, allowing individual control of the gas pressure within each actuator, thereby controlling the deformation of each actuator individually.

[0053] Obviously, those skilled in the art can make various modifications, variations, and combinations to the embodiments of the present invention without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Therefore, if these modifications, variations, and combinations of the present invention fall within the scope of the claims of the present invention and their equivalents, the present invention also intends to include these modifications, variations, and combinations.

Claims

1. A unidirectional deformation control structure for the lung contour of a lung-inspired soft robot based on a soft actuator, characterized in that, Includes a central mounting base, bellows actuator, pneu-net software actuator, connector, and trachea; At least three of the pneu-net software drivers are evenly distributed around the central mounting base. Along the circumference of the central mounting base, adjacent pneu-net software drivers are fixedly connected to each other via the connector; A bellows driver is fixedly connected between each connector and the central fixing base; the bellows drivers extend radially along the central fixing base. The trachea includes a first trachea that is connected to the pneu-net software driver in a one-to-one correspondence and a second trachea that is connected to the bellows driver in a one-to-one correspondence. The control structure simulates the radial deformation of the lung and the boundary curvature of the lung tissue by applying air pressure to the bellows actuator and applying air pressure to the pneu-net software actuator, respectively. The pneu-net software driver includes a non-stretchable layer and multiple elastic air cavity structures; Multiple elastic air cavity structures are connected in series and fixedly attached to the side of the non-extended layer away from the central fixing seat; A first air hole is provided in the middle of the side of the non-extended layer facing the central fixing seat; The first trachea is bonded to the non-extended layer and is connected to the first air hole. The central fixing base is a cylinder with plug-in sockets that correspond one-to-one with the bellows driver evenly distributed around its circumference, and through holes that correspond one-to-one with the pneu-net software driver are provided between adjacent plug-in sockets. The inner end of the bellows driver is fixedly installed in the socket; A first air tube connected to the pneu-net software driver is inserted through the through hole; The bellows actuator is a thin-shell structure with a corrugated structure and a second air hole is provided at the inner end; One end of the second trachea is bonded to the inner end and communicates with the second vent. The connector is made of silicone rubber to ensure a smooth transition of curvature at the connection point under the coupling deformation of the bellows driver and the pneu-net software driver.

2. The lung contour unidirectional deformation control structure as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The multiple elastic air cavity structures have different dimensional parameters to achieve bending deformation with varying curvature under the same air pressure.

3. The lung contour unidirectional deformation control structure as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The connector has a mounting groove for mounting the bellows driver in the middle of the side surface facing the central fixing seat, and symmetrically arranged plug slots for connecting the pneu-net software driver on both sides of the mounting groove. The outer end of the bellows driver is inserted into the mounting slot; The end of the pneu-net software driver is inserted into the connector slot.

4. The lung contour unidirectional deformation control structure as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The bellows driver is bonded to the center mounting base and the connector, and the pneu-net software driver is bonded to the connector.

5. The lung contour unidirectional deformation control structure as described in any one of claims 1-3, characterized in that, It also includes a tracheal fixation ring; The tracheal fixation ring is a circular plate-shaped structure with a perforation in the middle; The outer walls of the trachea pass tangentially through the perforation.

6. The lung contour unidirectional deformation control structure as described in any one of claims 1-3, characterized in that, It also includes an air source connected to the trachea.

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