Search results for "Stiffness"
showing 10 items of 524 documents
Force probe simulations of a reversibly rebinding system: Impact of pulling device stiffness.
2017
We present a detailed study of the parameter dependence of force probe molecular dynamics (FPMD) simulations. Using a well studied calix[4]arene catenane dimer as a model system, we systematically vary the pulling velocity and the stiffness of the applied external potential. This allows us to investigate how the results of pulling simulations operating in the constant velocity mode (force-ramp mode) depend on the details of the simulation setup. The system studied has the further advantage of showing reversible rebinding meaning that we can monitor the opening and the rebinding transition. Many models designed to extract kinetic information from rupture force distributions work in the limit…
Biomechanics and functional morphology of a climbing monocot.
2015
Climbing monocots can develop into large bodied plants despite being confined by primary growth. In our study on Flagellaria indica we measured surprisingly high stem biomechanical properties (in bending and torsion) and we show that the lack of secondary growth is overcome by a combination of tissue maturation processes and attachment mode. This leads to higher densities of mechanically relevant tissues in the periphery of the stem and to the transition from self-supporting to climbing growth. The development of specialised attachment structures has probably underpinned the evolution of numerous other large bodied climbing monocot taxa.
Mechanical properties of natural fiber composites produced using dynamic sheet former
2018
Composites formed from wood fibers and man-made cellulosic fibers in PLA (polylactic acid) matrix, manufactured using sheet forming technique and hot pressing, are studied. The composites have very low density (due to high porosity) and rather good elastic modulus and tensile strength. As expected, these properties for the four types of wood fiber composites studied here improve with increasing weight fraction of fibers, even if porosity is also increasing. On the contrary, for man-made cellulosic fiber composites with circular fiber cross-section, the increasing fiber weight fraction (accompanied by increasing void content) has detrimental effect on stiffness and strength. The differences …
Decoupled nonlinear adaptive control of position and stiffness for pneumatic soft robots
2020
This article addresses the problem of simultaneous and robust closed-loop control of joint stiffness and position, for a class of antagonistically actuated pneumatic soft robots with rigid links and compliant joints. By introducing a first-order dynamic equation for the stiffness variable and using the additional control degree of freedom, embedded in the null space of the pneumatic actuator matrix, an innovative control approach is introduced comprising an adaptive compensator and a dynamic decoupler. The proposed solution builds upon existing adaptive control theory and provides a technique for closing the loop on joint stiffness in pneumatic variable stiffness actuators. Under a very mi…
Comparison of Model-Based Simultaneous Position and Stiffness Control Techniques for Pneumatic Soft Robots
2020
Soft robots have been extensively studied for their ability to provide both good performance and safe human-robot interaction. In this paper, we present and compare the performance of two model-based control techniques with the common aim to independently and simultaneously control position and stiffness of a pneumatic soft robot’s joint. The dynamic system of a robot arm with flexible joints actuated by a pneumatic antagonistic pair of actuators, so-called McKibben artificial muscles, will be regarded, while its dynamic parameters will be considered imprecise. Simulation results are provided to verify the performance of the algorithms.
On Stability of Virtual Torsion Sensor for Control of Flexible Robotic Joints with Hysteresis
2019
Author's accepted manuscript (postprint). This article has been published in a revised form in Robotica, http://doi.org/10.1017/S0263574719001358. This version is free to view and download for private research and study only. Not for re-distribution or re-use. © 2019 Cambridge University Press. Available from 25/03/2020. Aim of the virtual torsion sensor (VTS) is in observing the nonlinear deflection in the flexible joints of robotic manipulators and, by its use, improving positioning control of the joint load. This model-based approach utilizes the motor-side sensing only and, therefore, replaces the load-side encoders at nearly zero hardware costs. For being applied in the closed control …
Guidelines to Select Between Self-Contained Electro-Hydraulic and Electro-Mechanical Cylinder
2020
This research paper presents guidelines on how to select between self-contained electro-hydraulic and electromechanical cylinders. An example based on the motion control of a single-boom crane is studied. The sizing process of the different off-the-shelf components is analyzed in terms of design impact when replacing a traditional valve-controlled hydraulic cylinder. The self-contained electro-hydraulic solution is the best choice when a risk for high impact forces is present, when the required output power level lies continuously above 2 kW, or when installation space, weight, and cost are critical design objectives. However, the electro-mechanical solution is expected to show more control…
An Input Observer-Based Stiffness Estimation Approach for Flexible Robot Joints
2020
This letter addresses the stiffness estimation problem for flexible robot joints, driven by variable stiffness actuators in antagonistic setups. Due to the difficulties of achieving consistent production of these actuators and the time-varying nature of their internal flexible elements, which are subject to plastic deformation over time, it is currently a challenge to precisely determine the total flexibility torque applied to a robot's joint and the corresponding joint stiffness. Herein, by considering the flexibility torque acting on each motor as an unknown signal and building upon Unknown Input Observer theory, a solution for electrically-driven actuators is proposed, which consists of …
Vibration reduction on city buses: Determination of optimal position of engine mounts
2010
International audience; This study is composed of three essential parts. The first part describes an indirect semi-experimental method which is used to reconstruct the excitation force of an operating diesel engine from the acceleration data measured at the mounting points. These internal forces can not be directly measured with force sensors; they have to be derived from the dynamic deformation of the engine support, so a theoretical analysis is carried out to derive the equations for the force re-construction.The second part deals with prevention of low frequency vibration of the powertrain from spreading to the rest of the vehicle. Three uncoupling techniques are used to minimize these v…
On stability and robustness of Virtual Torsion Sensor (VTS) for flexible joint robots
2016
The so called ‘Virtual Torsion Sensor’ (VTS) has been introduced in pervious works for flexible joint robots without sensing of the joint output states, i.e. link position and velocity. Since VTS is incorporated into the feedback control loop, so as to improve the links' positioning accuracy, the related stability is crucial for the overall control design and robust operation of VTS. In this paper, we analyze the stability of including VTS into the feedback loop while assuming the predicted joint torsion is gained by the proportional term of the underlying motor position feedback control. We start our consideration by an ideal case of the linear joint stiffness, first assuming the measured …