Actuators, Volume 11, Issue 8

This paper proposes a novel fault-tolerant control method based on the integral sliding mode technique for unmatched uncertain linear systems with external perturbations. Differently from the existing works, the uncertainties under consideration have...

Pneumatic actuators demonstrate various nonlinear and uncertain behavior, and as a result, precise control of such actuators with model-based control schemes is challenging. The Iterative Learning Control (ILC) algorithm is a model-free control metho...

A planetary thread roller bearing (PTRB) is a state-of-the-art component in electromechanical actuators (EMA) due to its high load-bearing capacity and small volume. The study of the PTRB is a leading task in the domain of EMA application. In this st...

This paper covers a new actuation and deflection controller configuration for high-aspect-ratio wings used on subsonic drones, missiles, and munitions. Current approaches to the flight control of these aircraft have unearthed challenges with friction...

Rail transit plays a significant role in the operation of an efficient and effective urban public transportation system. Safety and capacity are some of the most crucial objectives in railway operations. The communication-based train control (CBTC) s...

This paper introduces a novel dual-drive micro-feeding system (DDMS) to obtain precise micro-feed synthetic motion by rotating both the screw and the nut, which eliminates the effects of nonlinear friction at low micro-feeding speeds and has good res...

Eccentric structures will have torsional vibrations subjected to earthquakes, which can accelerate the damage of structures, and even become the main cause of building collapse. Semi-active control systems equipped with multiple magnetorheological (M...

This paper aims to further the understanding of the mixing process of in-line twin synthetic jets (SJs) and their impact in the near-wall region in a flat-plate laminar boundary layer. A numerical study has been carried out, in which colored fluid pa...

Dynamic characteristics and control of thin McKibben muscle (TMM) have not yet been fully investigated, especially on the translational antagonistic pair system. Therefore, the objective of this study is to propose a Switching Model Predictive Contro...

An innovative wearable upper-limb power-assist exoskeleton system (UPES) was designed for laborers to improve work efficiency and reduce the risk of musculoskeletal disorders. This novel wearable UPES consists of four joints, each comprising a single...

Interest in soft gloves, both robotic and haptic, has enormously grown over the past decade, due to their inherent compliance, which makes them particularly suitable for direct interaction with the human hand. Robotic soft gloves have been developed...

This paper describes a control strategy for a linkage finger exoskeleton mechanism with two degrees of freedom. To characterise the performance of the proposed finger motion assistance device, a replica of a human finger is prototyped to mimic human...

In the context of suspension design, the installation ratio (or motion ratio) is a parameter that relates wheel movement with spring deflection, quite an important kinematic property of a suspension. Yet, no study in the literature provides a clear r...

This paper presents a flexure-based displacement reduction mechanism driven by a voice coil motor to improve the motion resolution and eliminate the hysteresis nonlinearity of the traditional piezo-actuated micropositioning/nanopositioning stages. Th...

To produce multi-modal mobility in complicated situations is a significant issue for soft robots. In this study, we show the conception, construction, and operation of an inchworm-impersonating dielectric elastomer-activated soft robot. The robot is...

Electromechanical actuators (EMAs), as the critical actuator system of next-generation aircraft, have attracted the attention of many institutions and enterprises around the world. However, due to harsh working conditions, their reliability cannot sa...

In order to solve the problems of limited installation space and strict additional quality, the effects of internal distributed nonlinear energy sinks (NES) considering optimal locations on a composite truss core sandwich plate are investigated in th...

A novel MEMS continuous deformable mirror (DM) is presented. The mirror can be integrated into optical systems to compensate for monochromatic and chromatic aberrations. It is comprised of a 1.6 mm circular plate supported by eight evenly spaced flex...

Ice formation on aerodynamic surfaces is a safety-related issue in aviation. Thermal, mechanical, or hybrid systems are used to prevent or eliminate ice formation. To increase energy efficiency, new methods are being researched and tested, using new...

This paper mainly studies the transition gait planning by updating the parameters of snack robot motion control function through ROS nodes, including a straight running gait into a turning gait. In the practical scenario, when changing the control pa...

Owing to their compliance with most shapes, soft actuators are regarded as cost-effective solutions for grasping irregular objects. The material properties of nonlinear elastic polymers are considered necessary for the correct implementation of these...

In this paper, we consider the robust stabilization control problem of underactuated translational oscillator with a rotating actuator (TORA) system in the presence of unknown matched disturbances by employing continuous control inputs. A nonlinear c...

Pneumatic artificial muscles (PAMs) are becoming an increasingly popular form of soft actuator due to their unique actuation characteristics. The creation of accurate PAM actuation models is important for their successful implementation. However, PAM...

The valveless piezoelectric micropump has the advantages of simple structure, high precision and low cost, which can realize the directional transport of micro-fluid and wildly be applied in a micro analysis system. However, backflow at the outlet ca...

Nanopositioning systems driven by piezoelectric actuators are widely used in different fields. However, the hysteresis phenomenon is a major factor in reducing the positioning accuracy of piezoelectric actuators. This effect makes the task of accurat...

This study investigated the effect of electromagnetic shunt dampers on the resonance amplitude reduction in a superconducting magnetic levitation system. There are two types of electromagnetic shunt dampers, series type and parallel type, depending o...

In this paper, a new superconducting flywheel energy storage system is proposed, whose concept is different from other systems. The superconducting flywheel energy storage system is composed of a radial-type superconducting magnetic bearing (SMB), an...

A growing interest in Electromechanical Brakes (EMBs) is discernible in the automotive industry. Nevertheless, no EMBs have ever been deployed for series production, although countless publications have been made, and patents have been filed. One rea...

A large bionic flapping wing robot has unique advantages in flight efficiency. However, the fluctuation of fuselage centroid during flight makes it difficult for traditional state sensing and estimation methods to provide stable and accurate data. In...

The piezoelectric ultrasonic actuator is driven by the friction coupling between the stator and mover. Its friction pairs are very important, but there are few studies on the long-term output stability. Therefore, zirconia (ZrO₂) is selected as a sta...

An asymmetric friction principle is newly proposed for the design of inertial impact piezoelectric actuators. There are two ways to achieve asymmetric frictions: either by tuning the positive pressure or by tuning the friction coefficient. Compared w...

A dielectric barrier discharge plasma actuator was employed to reduce the passage vortex generated in a turbine cascade. This study focused on the burst mode drive of a plasma actuator and examined the relationship between flow field changes and the...

A novel fluidic thrust-vectoring (FTV) control method based on dual synthetic jets actuator (DSJA) is proposed and evaluated. Numerical simulations are governed by the compressible Unsteady Reynolds-Averaged Navier–Stokes (URANS) equations. Acc...

A three-degree-of-freedom AC magnetic suspension system using magnetic resonant coupling was fabricated. The AC magnetic suspension system can produce restoring force without active control. This system is dynamically stabilized by adding indirect da...

This paper presents a miniature Linear Series Elastic Actuator (LSEA), in which two low-cost linear potentiometers were adopted to achieve a compact design. To improve the measurement accuracy of the linear potentiometer, a novel Bezier-based Calibra...

In a narrow surgical space, flexible surgical instruments offer advantages over rigid counterparts in terms of operational dexterity. To this end, a flexible surgical instrument was designed in this study to realize dexterous motion using multiple se...

In order to understand the differences between dual synthetic jets (DSJs) and synthetic jets (SJs), particle image velocimetry (PIV) technology is used to capture the basic flow field characteristics of a dual synthetic jet actuator (DSJA) and a synt...