Search Results (3)

Fiber materials have advantages such as light weight and high strength, corrosion resistance, fatigue resistance, and easy processing and production, and they are widely applied in the repair and renovation of concrete structures. To promote the construction convenience of fiber materials, fiber raw yarn is continuously braided to form fiber-belt-bars. Based on the existing research, the performance of bonding between fiber-belt-bars and a concrete interface was investigated, and pull-out tests were performed to systematically investigate the effects of the fiber-belt-bar cross-sectional size, anchorage length, concrete strength, and fiber type on the bonding performance. The experimental results show that the bond strength reduces with an increase in the anchorage length, increase in cross-sectional size, and decrease in concrete strength, and the effect of fiber type on the bond strength is not obvious. On this basis, a formula for calculating the average bond strength of fiber-belt-bars is proposed. Experiments and calculations determined that the average bond strength between fiber-belt-bar and concrete with a cross-sectional size of 12 mm × 3 mm is 10–30% higher than that with a cross-sectional size of 20 mm × 3 mm for the same anchorage length. Finally, the minimum anchorage length of the fiber-belt-bar is proposed to provide a valuable reference for the use of fiber-belt-bar in concrete projects. Full article

A powered transfemoral prosthesis is needed as people with transfemoral amputation show 60 percent extra metabolic cost when compared to people with no amputation. Recently, as illustrated in the literature, the most high-torque robotic knee prosthesis utilize harmonic reducers. Despite the advantage of high reduction ratio and efficiency, the harmonic drive cannot be back-driven. Therefore, the harmonic drive is not an optimal solution for prosthetic systems with direct and indirect contact with the environment. In this paper, we outline an initial design of robotic knee prosthesis. The proposed robotic knee prosthesis consists of BLDC motor, cycloidal gear with reduction ratio 13:1, four-bar mechanism, and timing belt transmission with 4:1 reduction ratio. To optimize the torque transmission and range of motion (RoM), a multiobjective optimization problem must be undertaken. The end-effector motion depends on each bar length in the four-bar mechanism. The four-bar mechanism was optimized using particle swarm optimization (PSO). To complete the optimization, a set of 50 steps was collected using wearable sensors. Then, the data of sagittal plan were processed to identify the target profile for PSO. The prototype’s computer-aided manufacturing (CAM) was completed using a MarkTwo 3D printer with carbon fiber composite. The overall design can achieve a maximum torque of 84 N.m. However, the current design lacks the elastic component (no spring is added on the actuator output), which is necessary for a functional prosthesis; this limitation will be addressed in future study. Full article

Reinforcement corrosion poses a great threat to the safety of reinforced concrete structures, and the fiber-reinforced polymer is the ideal material to partially replace steel bars due to the high strength, light weight and good durability. However, the selection of appropriate fiber materials and a reasonable ratio of fiber bar to steel bar is not clear. Here, we measured the mechanical properties of fiber bars containing aramid fiber and carbon fiber. The deflection deformation, crack distribution and maximum crack width of the concrete upon various loads were experimentally and theoretically investigated. The predictions of the maximum crack width and deflection of reinforced concrete beams under various loads were proposed in ACI standard, which may provide guidance for further applications of fiber-belt-bar-containing concrete beams. Full article