A Pneumatic Flexible Linear Actuator Inspired by Snake Swallowing.

ABSTRACT: Soft robots spark a revolution in human-machine interaction. However, developing high-performance soft actuators remains challenging due to trade-offs among output force, driving distance, control precision, safety, and compliance. Here, addressing the lack of long-distance, high-precision flexible linear actuators, an innovative pneumatic flexible linear actuator (PFLA) is introduced, inspired by the smooth and controlled process observed in snakes ingesting sizable food, such as eggs. This PFLA combines a soft tube, emulating the snake's body cavity, with a pneumatically driven piston. Through the joint modulation of moving resistance and driving force by pneumatic pressure, the PFLA exhibits exceptional motion control capabilities, including self-holding without pressure supply, smooth

SUBMITTER: Qi Y 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11538662 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature