Actuator Torque Research Articles

Design and Evaluation of a Novel Torque-Controllable Variable Stiffness Actuator With Reconfigurability

This article presents a novel reconfigurable torque-controllable variable stiffness actuator (RVSA) for knee exoskeleton. The concept of reconfiguring the pulley block is proposed to make the actuator work in different torque and stiffness ranges. The reconfigurability allows the actuator to achieve a variety of passive stiffness behaviors, namely softening, linear, and hardening behaviors. Compared with existing variable stiffness actuators based on the principle of changing the spring preload, an advantage of the RVSA is that the actuator can achieve a wider range of joint stiffness. Moreover, the RVSA model is established to study the stiffness characteristics and the ability of storing energy. The analysis results show that the RVSA can increase the number of pulley blocks to expand the stiffness range and improve the energy storage capacity. This article also introduces a method for estimating and controlling actuator torque without using additional torque sensors. Finally, the stiffness characteristic of the RVSA is tested, and its use in a rehabilitation exoskeleton is tested. Experimental results show that the proposed torque control method is effective, and it also has a good performance in practical applications.

Base flow decomposition for complex moving objects in linear hydrodynamics: Application to helix-shaped flagellated microswimmers.

The motion of microswimmers in complex flows is ruled by the interplay between swimmer propulsion and the dynamics induced by the fluid velocity field. Here we study the motion of a chiral microswimmer whose propulsion is provided by the spinning of a helical tail with respect to its body in a simple shear flow. Thanks to an efficient computational strategy that allowed us to simulate thousands of different trajectories, we show that the tail shape dramatically affects the swimmer's motion. In the shear dominated regime, the swimmers carrying an elliptical helical tail show several different Jeffery-like (tumbling) trajectories depending on their initial configuration. As the propulsion torque increases, a progressive regularization of the motion is observed until, in the propulsion dominated regime, the swimmers converge to the same final trajectory independently on the initial configuration. Overall, our results show that elliptical helix swimmer presents a much richer variety of trajectories with respect to the usually studied circular helix tails.

Preliminary design and development of a low-cost lower-limb exoskeleton system for paediatric rehabilitation.

In this work, the design, modeling, and development of a low-cost lower limb exoskeleton (LLES) system are presented for paediatric rehabilitation (age: 8-12 years, mass: 25-40 kg, height: 115-125 cm). The exoskeleton system, having three degrees-of-freedom (DOFs) for each limb, is designed in the SolidWorks software. A wheel support module is introduced in the design to ensure the user's stability and safety. The finite element analysis of the hip joint connector along with the wheel support module is realized for maximum loading conditions. The holding torque capacity of exoskeleton joints is estimated using an affordable spring-based experimental setup. A working prototype of the LLES is developed with holding torque rated actuators. Thereafter, the dynamic analysis for the human-exoskeleton coupled system is carried out using the Euler-Lagrange principle and SimMechanics model. The simulation results of estimating joint actuator torques are obtained for two paraplegic subjects (Case I: 10 years age, 30 kg mass, 120 cm height and Case II: 12 years age, 40 kg mass, 125 cm height). The details of input parameters such as body mass, link lengths, joint angles, and contact forces are discussed. The simulation results of dynamic analysis have shown the potential of estimating the torques of joint actuators for the developed prototype during motion assistance and gait rehabilitation.

Controllable Height Hopping of a Parallel Legged Robot

Legged robots imitating animals have become versatile and applicable in more application scenarios recent years. Most of their functions rely on powerful athletic abilities, which require the robots to have remarkable actuator capacities and controllable dynamic performance. In most experimental demonstrations, continuous hopping at a desired height is a basic required motion for legged robots to verify their athletic ability. However, recent legged robots have limited ability in balance of high torque output and actuator transparency and appropriate structure size at the same time. Therefore, in our research, we developed a parallel robot leg using a brushless direct current motor combined with a harmonic driver, without extra force or torque sensor feedback, which uses virtual model control (VMC) to realize active compliance on the leg, and a whole-leg control system with dynamics modeling and parameter optimization for continuous vertical hopping at a desired height. In our experiments, the robot was able to maintain stability during vertical hopping while following a variable reference height in various ground situations.

Satellite disturbance detection and rejection with control moment gyros

Uncertain external disturbances either secular or oscillating make the satellite attitude be deviated or oscillating from the mission attitude. These disturbances should be detected in short and rejected with proper counter torques of actuators. Nonlinear second order sliding mode observer is one of the good algorithms that can be used for the detection of disturbances’ magnitude and frequencies. With a control law of the integration and dipole rejection filters based on the identified disturbance information, the actuator torques can compensate the disturbances. The spacecraft attitude is then stabilized at the mission attitude within a tolerable error. In this paper, the performances of detection and rejection algorithms are checked respectively in computer simulations. The applicability is proved on a satellite ground simulator recently developed in Korea Aerospace University. The results show that the algorithms work properly with small error, which is due to the low grade of sensors and actuators.

Design and control of a passive compliant actuation with positioning measurement by LED and photodiode detector for medical application

Control of assistive exoskeleton robot recently has to be crucial of development and innovation of medical application. To support daily motions for humans, control application of assistive exoskeleton robot allows for limb movement with increased strength and endurance during patient’s wearable exoskeleton robot application. The interaction between such exoskeleton device and the human body at the connecting joint, especially the knees, is the main interest of this design formation. The assistive device requires to design and to develop into innovation design aspect. This research presents the novel design of an active compliant actuation joint in order to increasing the higher torque of actuation than conventional actuation joint. Control design of the higher torque actuation usually difficult priori to conventional torque control. This will contributed to applying the supervisory control for compliant actuation that verified by experiment method. Then the hybrid Radial Basis Function neural network (RBFNN) and PID were proposed for actuating torque control methods. Experimental results show that the design of supervisory control is get better response, and higher producing torque output than the conventional design. Error of torque control of compliant actuation is not instead of [Formula: see text] N·m for applying supervisory control, RBFNN with PID controller. Indeed, the low electromagnetic interference (EMI) positioning system using LED and photodiode detector is proposed to be usable in medical application.

Non-contact long-range magnetic stimulation of mechanosensitive ion channels in freely moving animals.

Among physical stimulation modalities, magnetism has clear advantages, such as deep penetration and untethered interventions in biological subjects. However, some of the working principles and effectiveness of existing magnetic neurostimulation approaches have been challenged, leaving questions to be answered. Here we introduce m-Torquer, a magnetic toolkit that mimics magnetoreception in nature. It comprises a nanoscale magnetic torque actuator and a circular magnet array, which deliver piconewton-scale forces to cells over a working range of ~70 cm. With m-Torquer, stimulation of neurons expressing bona fide mechanosensitive ion channel Piezo1 enables consistent and reproducible neuromodulation in freely moving mice. With its long working distance and cellular targeting capability, m-Torquer provides versatility in its use, which can range from single cells to in vivo systems, with the potential application in large animals such as primates.

Design Principles for Compact, Backdrivable Actuation in Partial-Assist Powered Knee Orthoses.

This paper presents the design and validation of a backdrivable powered knee orthosis for partial assistance of lower-limb musculature, which aims to facilitate daily activities in individuals with musculoskeletal disorders. The actuator design is guided by design principles that prioritize backdrivability, output torque, and compactness. First, we show that increasing the motor diameter while reducing the gear ratio for a fixed output torque ultimately reduces the reflected inertia (and thus backdrive torque). We also identify a tradeoff with actuator torque density that can be addressed by improving the motor's thermal environment, motivating our design of a custom Brushless DC motor with encapsulated windings. Finally, by designing a 7:1 planetary gearset directly into the stator, the actuator has a high package factor that reduces size and weight. Benchtop tests verify that the custom actuator can produce at least 23.9 Nm peak torque and 12.78 Nm continuous torque, yet has less than 2.68 Nm backdrive torque during walking conditions. Able-bodied human subjects experiments (N=3) demonstrate reduced quadriceps activation with bilateral orthosis assistance during lifting-lowering, sit-to-stand, and stair climbing. The minimal transmission also produces negligible acoustic noise.

RoboWalk: augmented human-robot mathematical modelling for design optimization

ABSTRACT Utilizing exoskeleton devices to help elderly or empower workers is a growing field of research in robotics. The structure of an exoskeleton can vary depending on user’s physical dimensions, joints or muscles targeted for assistance, and maximum achievable actuator torque. In this research, a Human-Model-In-the-Loop (HMIL) constrained optimization technique is proposed to design the RoboWalk lower-limb exoskeleton. RoboWalk is an under-actuated non-anthropomorphic assistive robot, that besides applying the desired assistive force, exerts an undesirable disturbing force leading to the user’s fall. The HMIL method uses the augmented human-robot 2D model to take RoboWalk and human body’s joint torques into account during optimization. The superiority of HMIL method is proven by comparing the results with other strategies in the literature. Obtained results reveal elimination of the disturbing forces, 2 N.m. reduction in average human knee-joint torque, and significant decrease in the actuator required torque.

Design and Control of a Powered Lower Limb Orthosis Using a Cable-Differential Mechanism, COWALK-Mobile 2

Powered lower limb orthoses have been commercially available for patients with Spinal Cord Injuries (SCI) or stroke. However, studies have shown that there are adverse effects on kinematics as well as metabolic energy of the users due to the additional mass of the orthoses to the lower limbs. Since additional metabolic energy required to use the powered orthoses is one of the reasons to avoid using them, it is important to reduce the mass and moment of inertia of the exoskeletons for longer use and better outcomes. In this study, a powered-lower-limb orthosis for stroke patients using a cable-differential mechanism, which is called COWALK-Mobile 2, was proposed. The cable-differential mechanism was utilized to transmit the actuating torques from actuators to the hip and knee joints. The cable-differential mechanism enabled the actuators to be located near the hip, which yields reduced inertia of the device, as well as the loads at the joints to be shared by the actuators, which results in smaller required actuator torque. Optimal radii of the pulleys for the cable-differential mechanism were found for efficient load-sharing during walking. Experimental results with a healthy person walking on a level surface have shown that larger joint torques were generated with smaller actuator torques.

Prediction of Synchronization Time for Tractor Power-Shift Transmission Using Multi-Body Dynamic Simulation

HighlightsPrediction of synchronization time was performed for a power-shift transmission.We derived an analytical equation for synchronization time and developed a multi-body dynamics model.Model results were compared with results of a power-shift test on a synchronizer.Reduced computation and design time was achieved for automatic transmission design.Abstract. Synchronization time determines the capacity of a shift actuator for an automatic transmission system. Existing approaches for measuring this time only consider one rotational inertia and therefore cannot be applied to the power-shift transmission (PST) of a tractor with wet multi-plate clutches on both sides of the synchronizer. This study aims to predict the PST synchronization time by considering time-varying axial forces as first-order functions and the equivalent rotational inertias of the hub and the gear. First, we derive an analytical equation for the synchronization time. We then develop a multi-body dynamics (MBD) model that includes the drag torque of the wet multi-plate clutches. The MBD model is composed of a synchronizer, a linkage, and an output shaft of a shift actuator as a rigid-body system. A power-shift test was performed on the synchronizer at two shift stages requiring the maximum shift force of the system. The torque of the shift actuator (the input of the shift system) and the angular displacement of the output shaft of the shift actuator (the output of the shift system) were measured. The results of the simulation model were then compared with those of the shift test. Compared with the test results, the simulation results were validated within 7.63% accuracy, based on the maximum value for the torque of the shift actuator. The proposed equation was validated within a maximum error range of 8.25%. The proposed equation did not consider drag torque of the wet multi-plate clutches because that torque is much smaller than the cone torque of the synchronizer in the target shift system. The proposed equation can reduce computation time and will enable more precise sizing of the synchronizer and shift actuator in the early design stages of automatic transmissions. Keywords: Multi-body dynamics, Power-shift transmission, Synchronization time, Synchronizer, Tractor transmission.

Vibration analysis of ship propulsion shafting bearings

The ship power propulsion system is the "heart" of the ship, and the ship propulsion shafting is the core unit of the ship power propulsion system, and it is an indispensable part of the ship's propulsion torque and thrust transmission. The operating status of the propulsion shafting directly affects the operating conditions of the ship, and even the life of the ship. Bearing load is one of the most important manifestations of the operating state of the propulsion shafting. Focusing on changes in the bearing load can better study the operating state of the propulsion shafting. The research on the steady-state load of ship propulsion shafting meets the needs of ship development and has great value for practical engineering applications. This paper takes the ship propulsion shafting-oil film-bearing structure system as the research object. Through the steady-state load mathematical model of ship propulsion shafting bearings, it reveals the coupling relationship among ship propulsion shafting bearing load, oil film force, and journal position, and establishes the ship The steady-state load calculation method of the propulsion shafting bearings solves the basic theoretical problems of modeling and analysis of the steady-state operating state of the ship's propulsion shafting, and provides theoretical support for the safety prediction, management and evaluation of the ship's propulsion shafting operation.

MAS-Based Slip Ratio Fault-Tolerant Control in Finite Time for EV

The driving torques of all four wheels of distributed drive electric vehicles are independently controllable, and acceleration slip regulation (ASR) can be realized through the coordinated effort of torque actuators. Considering the multiple actuator coupling, nonlinearity, uncertainty and actuator faults in an ASR system, an adaptive nonsingular terminal sliding mode (NTSM) fault-tolerant control method-based multi-agent system (MAS) is proposed to address the above problems of an ASR system in this paper. First, based on multi-agent theory, a four- wheel independent drive ASR system is decomposed into four separate driving wheel agent systems to reduce the model dimension and transform the design of the ASR system controller into the design of a single driving wheel agent controller to reduce the computational complexity. Second, to address the unknown uncertainty of an actuator fault in an ASR system, an adaptive NTSM controller for a single driving wheel agent is designed to make the actual slip ratio track the ideal slip ratio for the ASR system in finite time. The controller switch item gains are selected by using an adaptive estimation mechanism for a single driving wheel agent controller to address the gain overestimation problem. This approach ensures that the actual control signal is smooth and that chattering phenomena and energy consumption are reduced. For actuator faults, a Lyapunov function based on multiagent theory is designed for a single driving wheel agent to avoid the impact of the coupling subsystem fault. Third, the Simulink and CarSim cosimulation results show that the proposed method improves the fault tolerance and robustness. The system can realize the actual slip ratio, track the optimal slip ratio in a finite time under different road adhesion conditions and effectively avoid the wheel slippage problem.

Dynamics study of an automobile equipped with a hybrid powertrain system compared with the classic one

Cars with hybrid powertrain substantially reduce the fuel consumption and the environmental pollution, especially at medium and low speeds, because they uses mostly electrical propulsion. The paper presents the mathematical calculation for working regimes of a car with parallel hybrid powertrain system, mathematical model which permits calculation of the propulsion power and torque, as well as the power and mechanical couple at the electrical generator. Dynamics performances for a car with a parallel hybrid powertrain system are presented and compared with the dynamics performances of the same car equipped only with same gasoline internal combustion engine and without hybrid system. From the point of view of performances, hybrid-powered cars can achieve higher accelerations and traction forces than classic cars during autonomy of electric system, due to the propulsion with this system.

Model reference adaptive LQT control for anti-jerk utilizing tire-road interaction characteristics

Sudden vehicle propulsion torque change under tip-in/out maneuver often leads to low-frequency longitudinal vibration due to the flexibility in the half-shaft and tire slip, which greatly affects vehicle drivability. Note that the vibration frequency is between 1 and 10 Hz and is difficult to be absorbed by the vehicle mechanical system. To optimize the vehicle drivability under tip-in maneuver, an Adaptive Linear Quadratic Tracking (ALQT) anti-jerk traction controller is proposed in this paper. Based on the experimental data, a Carsim-Simulink co-simulation model is developed for assessing control performance. A control-oriented model, considering the nonlinear characteristics of the tire-road friction coefficient and slip ratio, is then proposed. A reference model with rigid axle is used to provide the equilibrium points and reference velocity trajectory. Jacobi linearization method is then used to linearize the model along the desired trajectory and a linear deviation model based on equilibrium points is obtained. Finally, the deviation compensation receding horizon LQT controller is designed along with the Kalman state estimation. The effectiveness of the designed controller is assessed via simulation studies under different road surfaces and compared with PID and LQR controllers. The LQT controller is able to track the desired velocity profile with minimum jerk while increasing road safety. Furthermore, the effect of LQT weighting coefficients under different road surfaces are discussed. Simulation results show that the ALQT controller is able to optimize vehicle drivability under different road surfaces and the weighting matrices shall be selected based on the road condition for optimal drivability.

Simulation of a Passive Knee Exoskeleton for Vertical Jump Using Optimal Control.

Research on exoskeletons designed to augment human activities and the attendant exoskeleton industry are both rapidly growing areas of endeavor. However, progress in the field is currently being hindered by a lack of understanding of human-exoskeleton interactions. At present, the main method applied to reach such an understanding is to build and test prototypes or end-effectors (that simulate the devices), but this is a very time-consuming and costly process. In this study, we aimed to address this problem by simulating passive exoskeleton-human interactions during a vertical jump. The simulation is based on theoretical and empirical models. Using the simulation, we performed a numerical optimization procedure to determine the muscle excitations and starting postures that would give the maximum jump height. The simulation used a planar 4-DOF dynamic model. The muscles at the joints were modeled as torque actuators, with a flexor and an extensor for each joint and passive torque representing the tendon and muscle properties. We then simulated jumps with a passive knee exoskeleton with five different values of stiffness with the aim to study their effect on the jump height. The optimal excitation for the maximum jump height was found by using a genetic algorithm (GA). To improve our optimization performance and to test the convergence of the GA, the GA optimization was performed several times. For each exoskeleton condition, the GA found the optimal jump more than 400 times, and out of these solutions the one that achieved the highest jump was chosen. The result revealed an increase in jump height as the spring became stiffer. In addition, it was found that the energy that was stored in the spring of the exoskeleton was not fully converted to jump height.

Gain Selection for Attitude Stabilization of Earth-Pointing Spacecraft Using Magnetorquers

This paper considers a feedback control law that achieves attitude stabilization for Earth-pointing spacecraft using only magnetorquers as torque actuators. The control law is proportional derivative (PD)-like with matrix gains, and it guarantees asymptotic stability. The PD matrix gains are determined through the numerical solution of a periodic linear quadric regulator problem. A case study shows the effectiveness of the considered control law, and specifically of the gain selection method, in a simplified simulation scenario.

Capturing the Impact of Speed, Grade, and Traffic on Class 8 Truck Platooning

New simulation tools are necessary to predict the fuel savings, safety, and performance benefits of connectivity-enabled control systems for Class 8 trucks. The simulation framework described here combines high fidelity vehicle and powertrain models (uniquely, and with their controllers provided by the manufacturer) with a novel production-intent platooning controller. This controller commands propulsive engine torque, engine-braking, or friction-braking to a rear vehicle in a two-truck platoon to maintain a desired following distance. Additional unique features of the framework include high fidelity road grade and traffic speed data. A comparison to published experimental platooning results is performed through simulation with the platooning trucks traveling at a constant 28.6 m/s (64 MPH) on flat ground and separated by 11 m (36 ft). Simulations of platooning trucks separated by a 16.7 m (54.8 ft) gap are also performed in steady-state operation, at different speeds and on different grades (flat, uphill, and downhill), to demonstrate how platooning affects fuel consumption and torque demand (propulsive and braking) as speed and grade are varied. For instance, while platooning trucks with the same 16.7 m gap at 28.6 m/s save the same absolute quantity of fuel on a 1% grade as on flat ground (1.00 per-mile), the trucks consume more fuel overall as grade increases, such that relative savings for the platoon average decrease from 6.90% to 4.94% for flat vs. 1% grade, respectively. Furthermore, both absolute and relative fuel savings improve during platooning as speed increases, due to increase in aerodynamic drag force with speed. There are no fuel savings during the downhill operation, regardless of speed, as the trucks are engine braking to maintain reasonable speeds and thus not consuming fuel. Results for a two-truck platoon are also shown for moderately graded I-74 in Indiana, using traffic speed from INDOT for a typical Friday at 5PM. A 16.7 m (54.8 ft) gap two-truck platoon decreases fuel consumption by 6.18% over the baseline without degradation in trip time (average speed of 28.3 m/s (63.3 MPH)). The same platooning trucks operating on aggressively graded I-69 in Indiana shows a lower platoon-average 3.71% fuel savings over baseline at a slower average speed of 24.5 m/s (54.8 MPH). The impact of speed variation over, and grade differences between, these realistic routes (I-74 & I-69) on two-truck platooning is described in detail.

Many Objective Optimization of a Magnetic Micro–Electro–Mechanical (MEMS) Micromirror with Bounded MP-NSGA Algorithm

The paper proposes the automated optimal design of a class of micro–electro–mechanical (MEMS) devices, based on a procedure of finite element analysis coupled to evolutionary optimization algorithms. A magnetic MEMS, used as an optical switch, is considered as the case study. In particular, the geometry of the device is optimized in order to maximize the actuation torque and minimize the power losses and the device volume. The optimization algorithms belong to the genetic class and, in particular, Migrated Parents - Non-Dominated Sorting Genetic Algorithm MP-NSGA, with three objective functions, is compared to NSGA-III.

Design of target trajectories for the detection of joint clearances in parallel robot based on the actuation torque measurement

This paper proposed a design method of trajectories for detecting the excessive clearances of passive joints in a DELTA robot on the basis of the phenomenon that the actuation torque waveform fluctuates due to the collision between joint elements. We introduced “Joint Impact Index,” as an index to evaluate the magnitude of actuation torque fluctuation due to the collision at the passive joints with clearances. In order to simplify the problem of the clearance detection, this paper proposed to use a trajectory specially designed for the detection of each joint’s clearance, called “target trajectory”. For the design of the target trajectory, objective functions were defined based on the Joint Impact Index. Target trajectories obtained by solving the multi-objective optimization problem were applied to an industrial robot, and experiments were conducted. The relation between the detection performance in the experiments and the distribution of Joint Impact Index for the designed target trajectories was investigated and the effectiveness of the proposed method was discussed.