Modeling and Simulation of an Artificial Muscle and its Application to Biomimetic Robot Posture Control
Koray K. Safak and George G. Adams
Summary
The shape memory effect exhibited by Nitinol wire can be utilized to construct
an artificial muscle. The muscle is activated by an electric current, which
produces heat and initiates a phase transformation. The Nitinol
artificial muscle stress-strain-power relationship was determined by
experiments, and a mathematical model was developed. The artificial muscle
model was utilized for the posture control of a biomimetic underwater
robot. The optimal activation patterns for height, pitch, and roll postures
were determined. Simulation results for the height postures are in
agreement with the experiments. The separation between the center of gravity
and the centroid of the robot has a stabilizing effect on pitch and roll
postures.
Journal Publications