Athena Vale
The human muscle is a powerful actuator, allowing humans and animals to achieve agile and efficient movements. The intrinsic mechanical properties of muscles enable them to operate in different modes, facilitating versatile and adaptable actions. This has inspired the development of artificial muscles, which aim to mimic the functionality and performance of biological muscles. These synthetic muscle fibres are designed to contract and extend, replicating the movements of human muscles. With potential applications in robotics, prosthetics, and industrial automation, artificial muscles offer advantages such as high mechanical strength, rapid response times, and the ability to withstand external perturbations. The creation of muscle-inspired actuators, such as VAMPs (vacuum-actuated muscle-inspired pneumatic structures), showcases the innovative approaches to engineering soft and safe robots that can work collaboratively with humans.
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What You'll Learn
Pneumatic artificial muscles (PAMs)
Pneumatic artificial muscles, or PAMs, are contractile or extensional devices operated by pressurised air filling a pneumatic bladder. They were first developed in the 1950s by physician Joseph L. McKibben for use in artificial limbs. The basic principle behind PAMs is that when an enclosed volume increases, it shortens. In practice, this means that when the bladder is pressurised with air, the actuator either contracts or extends axially, with the direction of motion dependent on the orientation of the braided sleeve fibres.
PAMs are usually grouped in pairs: one agonist and one antagonist. This is because PAMs can only generate pulling forces, so an antagonistic setup is necessary to obtain bidirectional motion. The force and extension in PAMs mirror what is seen in the length-tension relationship in biological muscle systems. The relationship between force and pressure is also important: the force is dependent on pressure, but also on the PAM's state of inflation.
PAMs have a number of advantages. They are lightweight and flexible, and they can be made to have a soft touch, making them suitable for safe human-robot interaction. They are also inherently compliant: when a force is exerted on a PAM, it "gives in" without increasing the force in the actuation. This is particularly useful when PAMs are used in robots that interact with humans or when they are used for delicate operations.
PAMs have been used in a variety of applications, including robotic structures, exoskeletons, and medical devices. For example, PAMs have been used in a power-assist glove from Okayama University, Japan, which is capable of achieving approximately 20 N, sufficient to interact with objects in daily life. They have also been investigated for use in devices for walking assistance and low back support.
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Bioinspired soft actuators
A muscle can be considered an actuator, and artificial muscles are being developed for applications in robotics, medicine, and other fields. The development of artificial muscles is motivated by the desire to replicate the agile and efficient movements of humans and animals, which are achieved due to the muscle's ability to operate in different modes depending on its intrinsic mechanical properties.
Another example of a bioinspired soft actuator is the HimiSK (highly imitating skeletal muscle), which is designed to mimic the force-velocity and force-length properties of biological muscle. HimiSK is composed of a set of synergistically contractile units arranged in a flexible matrix similar to skeletal musculature, and it has been shown to exhibit intrinsic force-velocity and force-length characteristics very close to biological muscle.
In addition to pinecone-inspired and skeletal muscle-inspired designs, soft actuators have also been developed based on other natural organisms such as the mantis shrimp and VFT, which employ bistable structures for high power output and structural stability. Furthermore, graphene fillers have been used in synthetic muscle fibres to achieve rapid actuation under near-infrared (NIR) irradiation, resulting in a work capacity and power density several times higher than human muscle behaviours.
Overall, bioinspired soft actuators offer the potential to enhance the functionality of robots and prosthetics by imitating the agile and efficient movements of living systems. However, challenges remain in fully realizing the complex intrinsic properties of natural muscles in artificial systems.
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Artificial muscle applications
Artificial muscles have a wide range of potential applications across various fields, including robotics, prosthetics, medicine, and industry.
In robotics, artificial muscles can be used to create advanced machines that can mimic the agile and sophisticated movements of living systems. For example, artificial muscles can be used in robotic arms, legs, grippers, and other actuators to provide precise control and a wide range of motion. They can also be used in powered exoskeletons, which have applications in both industry and medicine.
In prosthetics, artificial muscles can improve the functionality and usability of prosthetic limbs. By incorporating artificial muscles, prosthetics can become lighter in weight, making them easier to use for amputees. Additionally, the high flexibility, contractile strength, and response rate of artificial muscles can enhance the overall performance of prosthetic devices, bringing them closer to the capabilities of real muscles.
In the medical field, artificial muscles can be used in biomedical devices and bioinspired robotics. For instance, the HimiSK (highly imitating skeletal muscle) is a bioinspired soft actuator that mimics the force-velocity and force-length characteristics of biological muscles. This technology has the potential to revolutionize rehabilitation and assistive devices, improving the quality of life for individuals with disabilities.
Furthermore, artificial muscles have applications in aerospace and automotive industries. The use of Electro-Active Polymers (EAPs) and ionic electroactive polymers can lead to advancements in various systems, including articulation mechanisms, power generators, and smart structures. For instance, pneumatic artificial muscles (PAMs) offer greater flexibility, controllability, and lightness compared to conventional pneumatic cylinders, making them suitable for aerospace applications.
Overall, the development of artificial muscle technology has the potential to disrupt multiple industries and improve various systems, from robotics and prosthetics to medicine and aerospace. The versatility, power, and flexibility of artificial muscles make them a highly promising technology for the future.
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Muscle-like force-velocity and force-length properties
The force-velocity relationship in skeletal muscles follows a double-hyperbolic pattern, with a breakpoint at very high forces/low velocities. This is a consequence of the kinetic properties of myofilament cross-bridge formation. The force-velocity relationship can be used to inform the optimization of human performance.
The force-length relationship in muscles refers to how the active force developed reaches a maximum and then decreases as the muscle length is increased. This is due to changes in the degree of overlap of the thick myosin and thin actin filaments. The force-length relationship also has implications for muscle performance, acting as a marker of alterations in muscle mechanics after exercise-induced damage.
The force-velocity and force-length relationships are intrinsic mechanical properties of muscles that enable humans and animals to achieve agile and efficient movements. For bioinspired robotics and prosthetics, it is highly desirable to have artificial actuators with muscle-like properties. However, it remains a challenge to realize both force-velocity and force-length properties in a single actuator simultaneously.
A bioinspired soft actuator, named HimiSK, has been designed to spatially arrange a set of synergistically contractile units in a flexible matrix similar to skeletal musculature. HimiSK presents both intrinsic force-velocity and force-length characteristics that are very close to biological muscle with inherent self-stability and robustness in response to external perturbations.
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Muscle-inspired single fibre actuators
A muscle can be considered an actuator, and artificial muscles are being developed for use in robotics and prosthetics. However, it is challenging to create artificial actuators with both intrinsic muscle-like force-velocity and force-length properties in a single actuator.
The HimiSK (highly imitating skeletal muscle) is a bioinspired soft actuator designed by arranging a set of synergistically contractile units in a flexible matrix similar to skeletal musculature. This actuator presents both intrinsic force-velocity and force-length characteristics very close to biological muscle with inherent self-stability and robustness in response to external perturbations.
In 2022, researchers at KAIST and Pusan National University in South Korea developed a human-muscle-inspired single-fibre actuator with reversible percolation. This actuator is based on soft fibres with strong contractive actuation properties and incorporates graphene fillers into a liquid crystal elastomer (LCE) matrix. The synergistic incorporation of a small amount of strong graphene fillers strengthens the actuator material and its performance. When laser light is applied to the fibre, the photothermal conversion effect associated with the graphene filler instantly increases the temperature of its surrounding LCE matrix, causing the fibres to shrink in length. Once the laser illumination is removed, the fibre returns to its original length as the LCE matrix cools down. This dynamic percolation behaviour strengthens the mechanical properties of the actuator fibres, enabling mammalian-muscle-like reliable reversible actuation.
The researchers evaluated their actuator through a series of tests and found that it achieved highly promising results, surpassing natural animal muscles in many ways, including actuation strain, stress, energy density, and power. The next challenge will be to integrate artificial muscles with neural activity to achieve natural animal-like movements and locomotion.
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Frequently asked questions
An actuator is a device that can be operated by several means, including electricity, combustion, and vacuum, to generate movement.
A muscle is a powerful, flexible, and versatile biological tissue that enables movement in humans and animals.
A biological muscle is not an actuator, but artificial muscles can be actuated. Pneumatic artificial muscles (PAMs), for example, are contractile or extensional devices that operate by filling a pneumatic bladder with pressurised air.
Artificial muscles can be used in robotics and prosthetics to mimic the agile and efficient movements of biological muscles. They can also be safer and easier to control than actuators powered by electricity or combustion.
