Muscle-like Actuators for Wearable Systems
AssigneeThe University of Hong Kong
InventorsNing XI, Qingqing ZHANG, Yafei ZHAO
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Abstract
A muscle-like actuator comprises a motor with a rotatable drive shaft and a string with a shear thickening fluid (STF) embedded therein. One end of the string is attached to the drive shaft and the other end is connected to a load to form a twisted string actuator (TSA). By controlling the speed and current of the motor, the characteristics of the actuator can be changed. Multiple strings may be located in a flexible soft tube to improve the mechanical properties of the actuator.
Claims13
A muscle-like actuator comprising:
- a motor with a rotatable drive shaft;
- and
- a string with a shear thickening fluid (STF) embedded therein, wherein one end of the string is attached to the drive shaft of the motor and the other end is connected to a load to form a twisted string actuator (TSA).
A method for fabricating a shear thickening fluid (STF) based twisted string, comprising the steps of:
- preparing a Kevlar string with a diameter of about 2 mm and a length of about 300 mm;
- preparing about 200 g of raw shear-stiffening gel by diluting a shear thickening gel (STG) at a ratio of m (STG):m (IP)=1:1 in a beaker for one hour,
- stirring the diluted STG constantly to mix it until a uniform suspension is formed;
- dropping the Kevlar string into the suspension to soak for 20 min;
- and
- vulcanizing the Kevlar string with STG in an oven at about 50° C. for about 30 min. to dry it;
- wherein the soak and dry steps are repeated at least twice to make sure the STG combines well with the string.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.