Fabrication, Modeling, and Design of Position and Pressure Control System of a Soft Pneumatic Linear Actuator

The field of Soft Robotics proposes the use of flexible and compliant materials in the fabrication of soft actuators that can interact with humans in a safer way than conventional robots. While soft pneumatic actuators operate with positive pressure inflating their chambers and creating movement, va...

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Main Authors: Leandro Seiti Goia, Diego Colon, Alexandre Brincalepe Campo
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: IEEE 2025-01-01
Series:IEEE Access
Subjects:
Online Access:https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/10976354/
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author Leandro Seiti Goia
Diego Colon
Alexandre Brincalepe Campo
author_facet Leandro Seiti Goia
Diego Colon
Alexandre Brincalepe Campo
author_sort Leandro Seiti Goia
collection DOAJ
description The field of Soft Robotics proposes the use of flexible and compliant materials in the fabrication of soft actuators that can interact with humans in a safer way than conventional robots. While soft pneumatic actuators operate with positive pressure inflating their chambers and creating movement, vacuum actuators operate with negative pressure collapsing their chambers to generate movement. The latter have the benefit that they do not burst due to excessive pressure during contraction and since they shrink in size when activated, they can fit into tight spaces and are therefore more compact, aside from possibly being able to expand with positive pressure. This work presents a soft pneumatic linear actuator designed as a bellow-shaped structure made of silicone rubber that operates with negative pressure to contract and with positive pressure to extend. A Finite Element Method dynamic analysis was performed, using the SIMULIA Abaqus software, to predict the actuator’s behavior. From the definition of the geometry, molds composed of modular pieces were designed and 3D printed to fabricate the actuator prototype. A test platform was designed to perform tests to characterize the actuator and then implement a position and pressure cascade control system, designed with a fuzzy pressure controller in the inner loop and a PI position controller in the outer loop, to regulate both the contraction and the extension of the actuator.
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spelling doaj-art-2043b6ce8d2c40dfbb2572955338e4a32025-08-20T03:52:38ZengIEEEIEEE Access2169-35362025-01-0113759737598410.1109/ACCESS.2025.356423710976354Fabrication, Modeling, and Design of Position and Pressure Control System of a Soft Pneumatic Linear ActuatorLeandro Seiti Goia0https://orcid.org/0009-0004-1124-047XDiego Colon1https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3709-6790Alexandre Brincalepe Campo2https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5473-3283Laboratory of Automation and Control, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, BrazilLaboratory of Automation and Control, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, BrazilElectrical Engineering Department, Instituto Federal de Educação, Ciência e Tecnologia de São Paulo, São Paulo, BrazilThe field of Soft Robotics proposes the use of flexible and compliant materials in the fabrication of soft actuators that can interact with humans in a safer way than conventional robots. While soft pneumatic actuators operate with positive pressure inflating their chambers and creating movement, vacuum actuators operate with negative pressure collapsing their chambers to generate movement. The latter have the benefit that they do not burst due to excessive pressure during contraction and since they shrink in size when activated, they can fit into tight spaces and are therefore more compact, aside from possibly being able to expand with positive pressure. This work presents a soft pneumatic linear actuator designed as a bellow-shaped structure made of silicone rubber that operates with negative pressure to contract and with positive pressure to extend. A Finite Element Method dynamic analysis was performed, using the SIMULIA Abaqus software, to predict the actuator’s behavior. From the definition of the geometry, molds composed of modular pieces were designed and 3D printed to fabricate the actuator prototype. A test platform was designed to perform tests to characterize the actuator and then implement a position and pressure cascade control system, designed with a fuzzy pressure controller in the inner loop and a PI position controller in the outer loop, to regulate both the contraction and the extension of the actuator.https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/10976354/Soft Roboticssoft pneumatic actuatorfinite element methodcascade controlgraphical user interface
spellingShingle Leandro Seiti Goia
Diego Colon
Alexandre Brincalepe Campo
Fabrication, Modeling, and Design of Position and Pressure Control System of a Soft Pneumatic Linear Actuator
IEEE Access
Soft Robotics
soft pneumatic actuator
finite element method
cascade control
graphical user interface
title Fabrication, Modeling, and Design of Position and Pressure Control System of a Soft Pneumatic Linear Actuator
title_full Fabrication, Modeling, and Design of Position and Pressure Control System of a Soft Pneumatic Linear Actuator
title_fullStr Fabrication, Modeling, and Design of Position and Pressure Control System of a Soft Pneumatic Linear Actuator
title_full_unstemmed Fabrication, Modeling, and Design of Position and Pressure Control System of a Soft Pneumatic Linear Actuator
title_short Fabrication, Modeling, and Design of Position and Pressure Control System of a Soft Pneumatic Linear Actuator
title_sort fabrication modeling and design of position and pressure control system of a soft pneumatic linear actuator
topic Soft Robotics
soft pneumatic actuator
finite element method
cascade control
graphical user interface
url https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/10976354/
work_keys_str_mv AT leandroseitigoia fabricationmodelinganddesignofpositionandpressurecontrolsystemofasoftpneumaticlinearactuator
AT diegocolon fabricationmodelinganddesignofpositionandpressurecontrolsystemofasoftpneumaticlinearactuator
AT alexandrebrincalepecampo fabricationmodelinganddesignofpositionandpressurecontrolsystemofasoftpneumaticlinearactuator