Design, Modeling, and Control of an Aurelia-Inspired Robot Based on SMA Artificial Muscles

Yihan Yang; Chenzhong Chu; Hu Jin; Qiqiang Hu; Min Xu; Erbao Dong

doi:10.3390/biomimetics8020261

Biomimetics (Jun 2023)

Design, Modeling, and Control of an Aurelia-Inspired Robot Based on SMA Artificial Muscles

Yihan Yang,
Chenzhong Chu,
Hu Jin,
Qiqiang Hu,
Min Xu,
Erbao Dong

Affiliations

Yihan Yang: CAS Key Laboratory of Mechanical Behavior and Design of Materials, Department of Precision Machinery and Precision Instrumentation, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China
Chenzhong Chu: CAS Key Laboratory of Mechanical Behavior and Design of Materials, Department of Precision Machinery and Precision Instrumentation, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China
Hu Jin: CAS Key Laboratory of Mechanical Behavior and Design of Materials, Department of Precision Machinery and Precision Instrumentation, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China
Qiqiang Hu: Department of Biomedical Engineering, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon, Hong Kong
Min Xu: CAS Key Laboratory of Mechanical Behavior and Design of Materials, Department of Precision Machinery and Precision Instrumentation, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China
Erbao Dong: CAS Key Laboratory of Mechanical Behavior and Design of Materials, Department of Precision Machinery and Precision Instrumentation, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/biomimetics8020261
Journal volume & issue: Vol. 8, no. 2
p. 261

Abstract

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This paper presented a flexible and easily fabricated untethered underwater robot inspired by Aurelia, which is named “Au-robot”. The Au-robot is actuated by six radial fins made of shape memory alloy (SMA) artificial muscle modules, which can realize pulse jet propulsion motion. The thrust model of the Au-robot’s underwater motion is developed and analyzed. To achieve a multimodal and smooth swimming transition for the Au-robot, a control method integrating a central pattern generator (CPG) and an adaptive regulation (AR) heating strategy is provided. The experimental results demonstrate that the Au-robot, with good bionic properties in structure and movement mode, can achieve a smooth transition from low-frequency swimming to high-frequency swimming with an average maximum instantaneous velocity of 12.61 cm/s. It shows that a robot designed and fabricated with artificial muscle can imitate biological structures and movement traits more realistically and has better motor performance.

Published in Biomimetics

ISSN: 2313-7673 (Online)
Publisher: MDPI AG
Country of publisher: Switzerland
LCC subjects: Technology
Website: https://www.mdpi.com/journal/biomimetics

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