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Modeling of jellyfish-inspired robot enabled by dielectric elastomer

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Abstract

Bio-mimetic robots can provide better camouflage effect to explore the seabed by mimicking the swimming locomotion of aquatic creatures. Jellyfish-like robot is a type of unmanned underwater robot can help us explore marine ecosystems and complex underwater ecology efficiently since they can swim steadily with its symmetrical structure that has been optimized in nature and generate sufficient jet propulsion with low power input. The developed jellyfish robot in this paper exhibits contracting muscle-like behaviour. It combines a dielectric elastomer (DE) diaphragm actuator with a transmission mechanism, which can provide compliant thrust force to propel the jellyfish robot to transit through water. This paper presents the design, fabrication, modeling, and experimental characterization of the novel jellyfish robot. A sawtooth signal with specific amplitude and frequency is chosen as input signal that leads to expansion and shrinking of the jellyfish bell. The simulation results from the observed two steps in a cycle of movement are quantitatively similar with the experimental outputs. A data-driven model is developed to capture the vibration in the first step. The process of contracting the bell and producing thrust force is captured by a physical model in the second step. The preliminary results show the jellyfish robot can swim underwater effectively in the vertical direction. The average speed of the robot is about 5 mm/s when a sawtooth signal with 5 kV amplitude and 2 Hz frequency is applied to the DE actuator.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant CMMI #1747855.

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  1. Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Houston, 4726 Calhoun Road, Houston, TX, 77204, USA

    Shengbin Wang & Zheng Chen

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  1. Shengbin Wang
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  2. Zheng Chen
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Correspondence to Zheng Chen.

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Wang, S., Chen, Z. Modeling of jellyfish-inspired robot enabled by dielectric elastomer. Int J Intell Robot Appl 5, 287–299 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s41315-021-00192-1

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