100 results about "Soft robotics" patented technology

A berry harvesting berries system including a mobile platform and a tendon-driven gripper having fingers made of a compliant material, which prevents unwanted damage to the berries.

The present invention relates to a soft robotic arm, and specifically to a variable stiffness soft robotic arm for minimally invasive surgery and a method for using the same. The variable stiffness soft robotic arm for minimally invasive surgery includes a variable stiffness support arm and a sleeve mounted on the variable stiffness support arm. The sleeve includes a bending section and a torsion section. The bending section and the torsion section are respectively wrapped with multiple wire loops and spiral wires. The bending section and the torsion section are respectively provided with at least two or more chambers distributed radially along the variable stiffness support arm and connected to a charging and discharging module. The chambers are charged and discharged with medium to achieve bending and torsion of the robotic arm. The overall variable stiffness support arm, bending section and torsion section of the present invention have the same structure. The type of bending and torsion can be changed by simply changing the wire loops or spiral wires wrapped around the outer wall. This greatly simplifies the structural design and arrangement of the robotic arm, making it convenient to combine different bending sections and torsion sections according to actual needs, and has good compliance.

The invention discloses a preparation method of an intelligent driving material based on natural rubber-hydrogel, and a heterogeneous interpenetrating network intelligent driving material containing a gel network and a rubber network is obtained by compounding super-hydrophilic natural rubber latex and poly (N-isopropylacrylamide) and introducing single-sheet-layer MXene at the same time. The material disclosed by the invention not only has excellent mechanical properties (the tensile strength is 1.7 MPa, which is enhanced by 50 times or more than that of blank intelligent hydrogel) and super-tensile properties (the elongation at break can reach 1500% or more) which are far better than those of common intelligent driving hydrogel, but also keeps high photo-thermal conversion efficiency and good intelligent driving performance, can realize remote controllable near-infrared light driving, and has wide application prospects. Therefore, the method has a wide application prospect in the fields of miniature soft robots, artificial muscles, biomedicine and the like.

Cell engineering, soft robotics and wearable electronics often desire soft materials that are easy to deform, self-heal, and relax stress. Hydrogel, a type of hydrophilic networks, which can be made responsive to environmental stimuli, are often used in the aforementioned applications. However, conventional hydrogels often suffer from poor stretchability and repairability. Here, we report hydrogels consisting of boronic ester dynamic covalent bonds in a double network of poly(vinyl alcohol) together with chitosan, demonstrating extreme stretchability (up to 310 times of the original length), instant self-healing (within 5 sec), reusability as well as inherent adhesion. Their instant stress relaxation as a result of low activation energy of the boronic ester bond exchange (less than 20 KJ / mol) contributes to the extreme stretchability and self-healing behaviors. The hydrophilic environment readily incorporates various additives and provide opportunities in conductive soft materials, bio-signaling, and soft artificial joint.

The invention provides a pneumatic soft mechanical arm obstacle avoidance trajectory planning method and system, and relates to the technical field of intelligent robot path planning and obstacle avoidance control, and the method comprises the steps that task space information of a target mechanical arm is acquired, and the task space information comprises starting point coordinates and target point coordinates of the tail end; the method comprises the steps of taking a starting point as a current node of a random tree, constructing an effective sampling space between the current node and a target point, generating a new sampling point in the effective sampling space by adopting a triple-guidance adaptive sampling strategy integrating target guidance, obstacle guidance and gradient guidance, constructing a new current node of the random tree by utilizing the new sampling point, and performing target guidance and obstacle guidance on the new current node. Iterative expansion of the random tree is realized until a target point is reached, and a preliminary collision-free path is obtained; the preliminary collision-free path is optimized, and a final collision-free path is obtained and used for controlling the obstacle avoidance track of the target mechanical arm from the starting point to the target point; according to the method, the path planning capability and the execution stability in a complex environment are improved.

The present invention describes a system and control method for rumen in-vitro fermentation, said system comprising: -a bionic rumen with a drive module for controlling its movement; -a bionic reticulum with an external extrusion mechanism for regulating its motion; -a connecting structure linking the bionic rumen and bionic reticulum; -a control method that coordinates the movements of the rumen and reticulum to regulate the fermentation process. The bionic rumen and bionic reticulum are interconnected, enabling simultaneous biomimetic digestion and fermentation. By employing soft robotic actuator, the system effectively simulates the kneading and relaxation of the rumen, closely replicating natural digestive mechanics and fermentation kinetics. A real-time monitoring system has been integrated, allowing for online measurement of key parameters such as gas production and composition, thereby enabling more precise analysis of degradation kinetics. This invention provides an advanced research tool platform for ruminant nutrition, enabling improved digestion modeling accuracy. It also delivers significant environmental and economic benefits, including reduced methane emissions and enhanced feed utilization, thereby promoting sustainable livestock production.

The present disclosure provides a vision based control of a reconfigurable soft robotic gripper. Conventional methods lack an intelligent control method which automatically adapts the configuration of the gripper based on the target object. The present disclosure includes a robotic gripper with a rigid palm and three soft fingers attached to the palm. Each finger is separately actuated using three separate motors. Out of the three fingers, one is fixed, and other two can move relative to the base, the motion of the movable fingers is actuated by motor(s). Each finger has multiple sensors to detect the magnitude of bending. A camera is attached to the base of the gripper, facing the object to be grasped. The camera image and the sensors measurements are given to a control unit and the control unit in turn gives the control signal to the actuator motors to suit the object to be grasped.

The invention belongs to the field of medical devices, and particularly relates to a soft robot thrombus removing device which comprises a robot body, a minimally invasive thrombus taking head, an external magnetic field control device and an imaging display device. The minimally invasive thrombectomy head comprises a front section thrombectomy part, a middle section positioning part and a tail section control part; a plurality of through hole structures are arranged in the thrombus extraction component; a rotating structure, a suction component and a clamping structure are respectively arranged in a plurality of through hole structures arranged in the thrombus extraction component; a magnetic navigation sensor is arranged in a middle section positioning component of the minimally invasive thrombus extraction head; a control unit electrically connected with the rotating structure, the suction part and the clamping structure is arranged in the control part at the tail section of the minimally invasive thrombus extraction head; the robot body is transported to the position close to the diseased region through the catheter and the puncture needle sheath. The device has the advantages that the device is specially designed for treating vascular embolism, is particularly suitable for removing thrombus of small blood vessels such as cerebral vessels, and has extremely high flexibility and operation precision.

A method of monitoring a device that includes a soft pneumatic actuator and a gas pump, the soft pneumatic actuator configured to actuate, assist and / or resist a movement of a body part. The method includes measuring the pressure of a fluid in the internal chamber of the soft pneumatic actuator. The pressure measurement or measurements is / are used to estimate anyone or any combination of: the volume of the internal chamber; the three-dimensional position, shape, and / or displacement of the soft pneumatic actuator; and the force delivered by the soft pneumatic actuator.

This invention discloses a docking and sealing system for oil refueling, comprising a soft robotic arm, a docking device, and an oil receiving device. The docking device includes an oil delivery docking rod, a docking cone, a locking mechanism, a slider, and a linear motor. The oil delivery docking rod consists of a docking ball head and sequentially connected axial guide sections, sealing sections, unlocking sections, transition sections, and locking sections. The locking mechanism includes a locking pin, a locking spring sleeve, a locking spring, an unlocking spring, and a limiting ball head. The oil receiving device includes an oil receiving guide cone and a self-sealing mechanism. The oil receiving guide cone consists of sequentially connected outer guide cones, inner guide cones, and a straight cylinder section. The self-sealing mechanism consists of an oil receiving straight cylinder, a spring, and a piston. This invention achieves self-docking, self-locking, and self-sealing between the refueling end and the equipment's oil tank, as well as automatic unlocking and separation after oil refueling. This improves the efficiency, reliability, and safety of oil refueling, and avoids pressure loss and oil leakage during the refueling process.

The present invention discloses an artificial muscle fiber based on liquid crystal elastomers that is electrically driven and heat-resistant. The fiber improves its overall mechanical strength without affecting its drive performance, enabling rapid and precise actuation and exhibiting rapid response characteristics. The electrically driven liquid crystal elastomer artificial muscle has high sensitivity, high drive capacity, and high output force, achieving 60% of its maximum drive capacity within 0.3 seconds. While meeting the requirements for a large drive capacity, it also possesses a high driving force, offering broad research prospects in the fields of flexible electronics, soft robotics, and rehabilitation medicine. The preparation method of the present invention is simple and easy to operate, enabling mass production.

An electrothermally driven artificial muscle fiber based on a liquid crystal elastomer. The overall mechanical strength of the fiber is improved without affecting the driving performance thereof, can be driven quickly and precisely, and has quick response characteristics. The electrothermally driven liquid crystal elastomer artificial muscle has high sensitivity, large actuation strain and high output force, can achieve a maximum actuation strain of 60% within 0.3s, and has a large driving force while satisfying a large actuation stroke, such that the electrothermally driven liquid crystal elastomer artificial muscle has broad research prospects in the fields of flexible electronics, soft robotics and rehabilitation therapy. The preparation method for the electrothermally driven artificial muscle fiber based on a liquid crystal elastomer involves a simple preparation process and easy operations, and can be mass-prepared.

A soft robotic gripper includes multiple fingers, each embedding at least one artificial muscle formed as a low-temperature shape-memory coil that recovers a memorized shape when electrically heated, thereby driving the fingers between open and gripping configurations in cold environments; the coil acts as a Joule-heated actuator enabling reversible contraction / extension with improved response at reduced transformation temperatures suitable for low-ambient operation.

A soft robotic imaging device includes a partially extendable scope with a soft robotic actuated flexible distal part that can bend in various directions. The device includes an imaging means at its distal end to capture and transmit video imagery during surgery. Additionally, it includes a surgical access device with a detachable fluid or gas channel and a fixation mechanism. The electronic hardware integrated into the system is housed within a handle attached to the extendable proximal part of the scope. The soft robotic actuated flexible distal part may be constructed from one or more conductive polymers. The device is designed for easy integration into an imaging system for minimally invasive surgical procedures. The system aids in detecting surgical instruments, monitoring tissue conditions, and tracking instrument movements and allows the surgeon to synchronize the flexible distal part's movements with surgical instruments and voice command-based features to provides surgeons with enhanced visibility and control.

The utility model relates to a small soft robotic fish tail fin thrust measuring device, which is characterized in that the upper end of a swing rod is hinged with a mounting frame and rotates around the Y direction, a tension sensor is arranged on one side of the mounting frame and is connected with the swing rod through a stay wire, and a soft driver is hinged with the lower end of the swing rod and rotates around the Z direction; a robotic fish tail fin is arranged at the rear end of the soft driver; a hinge frame is arranged at the lower end of the swing rod, a hinge seat is arranged at the front end of the soft driver, the front end of the hinge seat is rotationally connected with the hinge frame through a hinge shaft, the hinge shaft is arranged at the center of a limiting disc, limiting pin holes are evenly distributed in the circumferential edge of the limiting disc, and limiting pins for limiting the swing angle of the hinge seat are inserted into two of the limiting pin holes. The robot fish tail fin is driven by the soft driver to periodically swing around the lower end of the swing rod, thrust generated by the robot fish tail fin can drive the swing rod to rotate and pull the pull wire, and therefore thrust measurement of the robot fish tail fin can be achieved through the tension sensor connected with the pull wire.

The application discloses a control method of a pneumatic soft-bodied mechanical arm. First, an image is collected through a visual sensor, a pose sensor senses a current position of a center of an end of the mechanical arm, a target detection algorithm is used to extract position coordinates of an object to be grabbed, and a target position of the center of the end of the mechanical arm is obtained through coordinate conversion. Then, the internal pressure of each soft-bodied driver of each soft-bodied mechanical arm unit when the center of the end of the mechanical arm reaches the target position is calculated. Finally, a PID controller is designed, the charging / discharging amount of each soft-bodied driver is obtained through the PID controller, the charging / discharging control of the soft-bodied driver is performed through an electrical proportional valve, the soft-bodied mechanical arm is driven to move, and the center of the end of the mechanical arm reaches the target position. The method is combined with the object to be grabbed, and precise control of the soft-bodied mechanical arm is realized.

The invention discloses a paper folding module, a stacking structure, a paper folding combination, a soft mechanical arm and a feeding device and method, and belongs to the technical field of soft robots. The paper folding module serves as a core foundation and is mainly composed of a paper folding framework and an airtight coating film; the paper folding framework adopts a buckle structure to eliminate bending rigidity, a limited buckling supporting plate is integrated in the paper folding framework, and the double-curvature shallow shell effect is utilized to provide high-energy-density resistance rigidity and quick reset capacity without positive pressure assistance. Two stacking structures of a stacking frame common cavity structure and a unit splicing structure are derived based on the paper folding module and assembled into an L-shaped soft mechanical arm according to needs, visual feedback can be integrated to form an automatic feeding device, full-process automation of food source positioning, accurate scooping, safe meal delivery and automatic reset is achieved through cooperation of multiple modules, and the automatic feeding device is suitable for large-scale production. And the feeding process is safe and free of damage. The device has the rigid-flexible coupling characteristic and man-machine friendliness, the manufacturing process is simple, the module is flexible to disassemble and assemble, and the device can be widely applied to rehabilitation nursing and other scenes.

A morphing, biologically-derived actuator can be used with soft robotics in a marine environment. The actuator is fabricated using a modified hydrogel additive manufacturing printing process, where the printed structure is exposed to various concentrations of crosslinking initiator to ensure a water-tight seal between adjacent printed layers. The actuator fabricated using the disclosed process is suitable for marine use and is safe for marine animals and is biodegradable.

The invention discloses a bird-claw-imitating actuator with a bending and twisting combined joint, and relates to the technical field of soft robots, the bird-claw-imitating actuator comprises a sole, toes are hinged to the sole, each toe comprises a connecting toe joint, two attaching toe joints and a claw toe joint, the middle parts of the connecting toe joint, the two attaching toe joints and the claw toe joint are sequentially connected through flexible joints, and the connecting toe joint is connected with the two attaching toe joints through flexible joints. The upper surfaces of the connecting toe joint, the two attachment toe joints and the claw toe joint are sequentially connected through reset springs, and pins are installed in the connecting toe joint, the two attachment toe joints and the claw toe joint. According to the bird claw imitating actuator with the bending and twisting combined joints, a composite adhesion mechanism is formed through vacuum adsorption and dry adhesion materials, adaptability is high, and adhesive force is large; and low-power-consumption self-locking is achieved by means of a worm and gear structure, and the device has good dynamic stability and engineering controllability and is suitable for man-machine interaction, robot surface operation and intelligent attachment systems in various complex environments.

The invention discloses a humidity-driven soft actuator and a preparation method thereof, the actuator takes a patterned black polyimide (PI) film as a substrate, and the substrate is compounded with two-dimensional transition metal carbide Ti3C2Tx (MXene) / amylopectin amp; a functional layer is formed by Amylose / carbon nanotubes (CNTs), when the functional layer absorbs moisture and expands, the actuator is bent towards the PI side, and when the functional layer is dehumidified and contracts, the actuator is bent reversely; the bending response direction is defined through the substrate gap direction of nanosecond laser machining, and the initial curvature and the bending degree are regulated and controlled through vacuum hot pressing treatment. The components cooperate to endow the actuator with rapid humidity response capability and excellent mechanical stability. The technical problems that an existing humidity driving actuator is poor in programmability and an interface is prone to stripping are solved, an external driving source is not needed, the technology is simple, convenient and controllable, and the potential application value in the fields of soft robots, flexible intelligent equipment and the like is shown.

The invention provides a self-sensing driver based on thermoelectric fiber intrinsic integration, a closed-loop control method of the self-sensing driver and a soft grabbing device, and belongs to the technical field of soft robot driving and control. The device comprises a liquid crystal elastomer deformation layer which is used for generating programmable contraction or bending deformation after being heated; the driving-sensing coplanar layer is arranged below the liquid crystal elastomer deformation layer in a stacked mode, the heating-sensing coplanar layer is arranged below the liquid crystal elastomer deformation layer in a stacked mode, and the polyimide constraint bottom layer is arranged below the driving-sensing coplanar layer in a stacked mode and used for limiting the single-degree-of-freedom deformation direction; and the closed-loop control unit is used for receiving the thermoelectric force signal generated by the heating-sensing coplanar layer and dynamically adjusting the input voltage of the snake-shaped patterned conductive polymer driving film in the heating-sensing coplanar layer. The method successfully solves the three core problems of mechanical mismatch, temperature drift interference and insufficient open-loop control precision in the field of soft robots.

An execution module and a soft robotic arm having the same belong to the technical field of robotic arms. An execution module includes: a soft actuator, at least one soft actuator is provided, the soft actuator includes a dielectric layer and a conductive layer, the dielectric layer is connected to the conductive layer, the dielectric layer is configured to have charge transfer when touched by a human body, and the conductive layer is configured to detect the charge change of the dielectric layer and generate an electrical signal. In this application, a soft actuator is constructed by the dielectric layer and the conductive layer, and the dielectric layer has charge transfer when touched by a human body, and the conductive layer detects the charge change during the charge transfer of the dielectric layer and generates an electrical signal to solve the problem that it is difficult for a soft robotic arm to accurately recognize human contact.

An all - sea - depth autonomous multi - point electromagnetic deployment device and method for wireless charging, which relates to the field of underwater robots. It solves the problem of how to achieve precise deployment and throwing tasks in the extreme pressure and corrosion environment of the deep sea without using heavy and expensive protection devices, while facilitating maintenance and improving the versatility of the device. The device includes a housing, a functional throwing module, a laser ranging sensor module, etc.; the receiving end of the wireless charging component, the laser ranging sensor module, the functional throwing module and the actuator are all built in the housing; the laser ranging sensor is installed at the bottom of the electromagnetic deployment device, and the laser ranging sensor module collects the position information of the submersible and sends the information to the micro - control unit, which is used to calculate the required buoyancy and position information by processing the position information collected by the laser ranging sensor module, so that the submersible can complete the pre - deployment. It is also applicable to various underwater vehicle fields including bionic soft robotic fish.

This invention discloses a soft robot system and its working method for sampling polar ice layers, applied in the field of polar drilling technology. It includes a soft robot and an ice surface working platform. The soft robot comprises a sub-ice drilling soft body and an ice surface sealing soft body. The sub-ice drilling soft body includes a soft body main unit and a heat-fusion module located at the front end of the soft body main unit. The ice surface sealing soft body includes a soft body main unit. Both soft body main unit one and soft body main unit two are provided with hollow channels, and several air chambers are provided inside soft body main unit one on both sides of the hollow channels. The ice surface working platform includes a pneumatic system, a pipeline system, a water storage system, and a main controller. The main controller is electrically connected to the pneumatic system, the pneumatic system pipelines are connected to the pipeline system, and the pipeline system pipelines are connected to the water storage system and the air chambers. The pipeline system passes through the hollow channels and connects soft body main unit one and soft body main unit two in series. This invention meets the existing requirements of unmanned drilling, flexible selection of sampling locations, no complex mechanical structure, and low propulsion resistance in ultra-deep drilling.

Feedback control for controlling a robotic manipulator includes receiving measurement signals from one or more tactile sensors and filtering the measurement signals to align them with the directions of motion of the end effector to produce an impedance-shaping signal. The feedback control determines one or more control signals to the actuators to track a reference state of the end effector based on measurements of the state of the end effector and combines the control signal with the impedance shaping signal to produce control commands. Also, the feedback control may include submitting the determined control commands to the actuators causing a change in the state of the end effector, where the state of the end effector includes one or a combination of an end effector position, an end effector velocity, and an end effector force.

The invention discloses a body force position sensing soft mechanical arm driven by spiral artificial muscles and a manufacturing method. Comprising a robot arm body; the driving module comprises a plurality of electric heating driving type spiral artificial muscles which are arranged in the circumferential direction of the mechanical arm body at intervals, and each spiral artificial muscle is arranged in the axial direction of the mechanical arm body; the sensing module comprises a stretching sensor used for monitoring the posture state of the soft mechanical arm in real time, a touch sensor used for monitoring the contact force of the tail end of the soft mechanical arm in real time and a temperature sensor used for monitoring the temperature of the spiral artificial muscle in real time; the electronic device module is installed at the head end of the mechanical arm body and electrically connected with the driving module and the sensing module. By integrating the temperature, posture and touch sensing technology, the intelligence and self-adaptive capacity of the soft mechanical arm are remarkably improved.

Exemplary embodiments relate to a soft robotic actuator (100) configured to receive a modular fingertip. A fingertip (204) may be disposed at a distal end (110) of the standard actuator. The distal tip of the actuator may be sized and shaped to correspond to the proximal end of the modular fingertip. A backplate (206) may be disposed within a reservoir of the actuator (202) in order to disperse the load of a fastener (208) that can pass through the reservoir and the backplate and be inserted into one or more holes that pass through the actuator material and into the modular fingertips. The apertures may extend only partially through the modular fingertip, but not fully through the modular fingertip, for the purpose of reducing bacterial breeding points. In other embodiments, the fastener may be inserted into the fingertip and secured to the actuator. A sealing bead (210) may be disposed between the distal tip of the actuator and the fingertip.

The present invention relates to a device and method for measuring the thrust of a small soft robotic fish tail fin, wherein the upper end of a swing arm is hinged to a mounting frame and rotates in the Y direction, a tension sensor is provided on one side of the mounting frame, and the tension sensor is connected to the swing arm via a cable, a soft actuator is hinged to the lower end of the swing arm and rotates in the Z direction, and a robotic fish tail fin is provided at the rear end of the soft actuator; an articulated frame is provided at the lower end of the swing arm, and an articulated seat is provided at the front end of the soft actuator, and the front end of the articulated seat is rotatably connected to the articulated frame via an articulated shaft, the articulated shaft is provided at the center of a limit plate, and the circumferential edge of the limit plate is uniformly provided with limit pin holes, wherein two limit pin holes are inserted into the limit pin holes to limit the swing angle of the articulated seat. In the present invention, the soft actuator drives the robotic fish tail fin to periodically swing around the lower end of the swing arm, and the thrust generated by the robotic fish tail fin drives the swing arm to rotate and pull the cable, thereby enabling the thrust of the robotic fish tail fin to be measured using the tension sensor connected to the cable.

The invention discloses a mechanical response luminescent polymer based on an AIE polycaprolactone molecular ring and a preparation method thereof, and belongs to the field of mechanical response intelligent materials. The technical problems that an existing AIE-based mechanical response material is poor in mechanical property, low in response sensitivity and poor in cyclic reversibility are solved. The preparation method comprises the following steps: synthesizing linear polycaprolactone with an AIE group by taking dihydric alcohol containing an aggregation-induced emission group as an initiator; then preparing a linear precursor with polymerizable double bonds in a molecular chain segment and alkynyl and azido at the tail ends through multi-step end group functionalization reaction; the preparation method comprises the following steps: cyclizing a linear precursor to obtain an AIE polycaprolactone molecular ring containing double bonds; and finally, initiating double bonds on the ring through an initiator for polymerization to form a polymer network. The obtained material has very high elongation at break, high-sensitivity force-induced fluorescence enhanced response and excellent cycling stability, and can be widely applied to the fields of stress sensing, damage diagnosis, soft robots and the like.

The application discloses a metamorphic device, a soft robot pump and a soft robot gripper. The metamorphic device comprises a flexible wall and a plurality of hard parts. The flexible wall is enclosed to form a flexible cavity. The hard parts are attached to the flexible wall to form a driving area at the position where the flexible wall is attached to the hard parts. Adjacent hard parts have a gap therebetween, so that the part of the flexible wall located in the gap forms a crease structure. The plurality of hard parts can move away from each other and stretch around the crease structure under the action of an external force, so as to drive the flexible cavity to expand. The plurality of hard parts can also move close to each other and fold around the crease structure under the action of an external force, so as to drive the flexible cavity to contract. Since the hard driving area is formed at the position where the flexible wall is attached to the hard parts, the disorder of the flexible cavity when expanding can be reduced. Meanwhile, it is convenient to exert force on the hard parts of the metamorphic device, thereby providing a more optimal hardware basis for realizing programmed control of the metamorphic device.