Actuator Technologies and Control: Materials, Devices and Applications

A special issue of Actuators (ISSN 2076-0825).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 May 2025 | Viewed by 816

Special Issue Editor

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

We plan to publish a Special Issue in the journal Actuators to provide a broad overview of the latest achievements of actuator technologies, control and their application in many fields of industry. Papers could be original research papers, as well as review papers, focused on the current state of the art in one of the areas covered by the journal’s aims and scopes. The main topics of this Special Issue include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • New actuator materials; 
  • Innovative actuator designs and device concepts;
  • Miniaturized and micro-actuators;
  • Assessment and precision measurements;
  • Actuators for drive/control technologies;
  • Actuators for manufacturing;
  • Actuators for aircrafts and on- and off-road vehicles/machines;
  • Actuators for robotics and other autonomous applications;
  • Actuators for biomedical applications.

This Special Issue will also include high-quality papers presented during the 2nd International Electronic Conference on Actuator Technology (IECAT 2024, https://sciforum.net/event/IECAT2024), sponsored by the MDPI open access journal Actuators. The primary aim of IECAT is to promote scientific and technological exchanges among researchers and engineers around the world. Following the end of the conference, selected papers (extended from conference proceedings) will be published in this Special Issue.

Prof. Dr. Paolo Mercorelli
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Actuators is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • materials
  • actuator design
  • efficiency
  • dynamics
  • energy consumption
  • applications

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

15 pages, 8248 KiB  
Article
A Lightweight, Simple-Structure, Low-Cost and Compliant Twisted String Actuator Featuring Continuously Variable Transmission
by Chanchan Xu, Tong Liu, Shuai Dong, Yucheng Wang and Xiaojie Wang
Actuators 2024, 13(12), 477; https://doi.org/10.3390/act13120477 - 25 Nov 2024
Viewed by 616
Abstract
Twisted string actuators, which are an emerging artificial muscle, efficiently convert rotary motor motion into linear load movement, with advantages like high transmission ratio, compliance, simple structure, and long-distance power transmission. However, the limited range of transmission ratio adjustment remains a challenge. Thus, [...] Read more.
Twisted string actuators, which are an emerging artificial muscle, efficiently convert rotary motor motion into linear load movement, with advantages like high transmission ratio, compliance, simple structure, and long-distance power transmission. However, the limited range of transmission ratio adjustment remains a challenge. Thus, this paper introduces a novel twisted string actuator design that automatically and continuously adjusts its transmission ratio in response to external loads. Utilizing lightweight hyperelastic slender rods, the twisted string actuator with continuously variable transmission achieves a simple, compact, and cost-effective design. By manipulating the distance between two twisted strings through rod deformation, the transmission ratio continuously adapts to varying load conditions. Mathematical models of the twisted string actuator with continuously variable transmission are derived and experimentally validated, demonstrating a 2.1-fold transmission ratio variation from 0.1 kg to 1.5 kg loads. Application in an anthropomorphic robot finger showcases a 6.2-fold transmission ratio change between unloaded and loaded states. Our twisted string actuator with continuously variable transmission offers unparalleled advantages in weight, cost, simplicity, compliance, and continuous transmission ratio adjustability, making it highly suitable for robotic systems. Full article
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