軸方向繊維強化型人工筋肉の応力振幅の低減による長寿命化の検討

抄録

A pneumatic artificial muscle is an air pressure-activated rubber actuator. It is lightweight and high in power density compared to motorized actuators and fluidic cylinders. The authors have developed a straight-fiber-type pneumatic artificial muscle (SF-ARM) with high output and contraction amounts compared to those of the widely used McKibben type artificial muscle. Until now, the ratio between the inside diameter of the SF-ARM and the operating part length was examined. However, there is a limit in extending the fatigue life by decreasing the aspect ratio. Therefore, in this study, we have extended the life by changing stress amplitude. As a result, fatigue life could be improved by reducing stress amplitude.