Muscle contraction hardening is essential for enhancing strength and enabling rapid reactions in living organisms. Taking inspiration from nature, the team of researchers at QMUL’s School of Engineering and Materials Science has created an artificial muscle that transitions between soft and hard states while possessing the ability to sense forces and deformations. Their findings are detailed in Advanced Intelligent Systems.
"Empowering robots, especially those made from flexible materials, with self-sensing capabilities is a pivotal step towards true bionic intelligence," Dr Zhang, a lecturer at Queen Mary and the lead researcher said in a statement.
The artificial muscle developed is said to exhibit flexibility and stretchability similar to natural muscle, making it ideal for integration into intricate soft robotic systems and adapting to various geometric shapes. With the ability to withstand over 200 per cent stretch along the length direction, this flexible actuator with a striped structure demonstrated exceptional durability.
By applying different voltages, the artificial muscle can rapidly adjust its stiffness, achieving continuous modulation with a stiffness change exceeding 30 times. According to QMUL, its voltage-driven nature provides a significant advantage in terms of response speed over other types of artificial muscles. Additionally, this novel technology can monitor its deformation through resistance changes, eliminating the need for additional sensor arrangements and simplifying control mechanisms while reducing costs.
To fabricate the self-sensing artificial muscle, carbon nanotubes are mixed with liquid silicone using ultrasonic dispersion technology and coated uniformly using a film applicator to create the thin layered cathode, which also serves as the sensing part of the artificial muscle. The anode is made directly using a soft metal mesh cut, and the actuation layer is sandwiched between the cathode and the anode. After the liquid materials cure, a complete self-sensing variable-stiffness artificial muscle is formed.
The potential applications of this flexible variable stiffness technology range from soft robotics to medical applications. Integration with the human body opens up possibilities for aiding individuals with disabilities or patients in performing essential daily tasks. By integrating the self-sensing artificial muscle, wearable robotic devices can monitor a patient's activities and provide resistance by adjusting stiffness levels, facilitating muscle function restoration during rehabilitation training.
"While there are still challenges to be addressed before these medical robots can be deployed in clinical settings, this research represents a crucial stride towards human-machine integration," said Dr Zhang. "It provides a blueprint for the future development of soft and wearable robots."
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