抄録
In this paper a modification of the McKibben pneumatic muscle, following the idea of a research group from the University of Warsaw, is implemented and manufactured. The muscle consists of asilicon bladder that is attached at either end to fittings; it has the shape of a tube. Inside the silicon bladder longitudinal high resistance cables are inserted with some circular rings. When the internal bladder is pressurised the actuator shorten. A Finite Element Modelling, using the Mooney-Rivlin formulation with two coefficients for the rubber and with truss elements for the longitudinal cables of the muscle, is used to forecast its behaviour. A prototype has been manufactured. A test bed has been developed to measure the mechanical characteristics of the actuator. The results of the comparison between the model and the prototype are presented and discussed. The F.E. model optimised in this way can be used to design every shape of this kind of pneumatic muscle actuator and to define simplified design procedure.
