PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

A replacement for traditional motors could enhance next-gen robots

Researchers at Stanford have designed a spring-assisted actuator – a device that can accomplish dynamic tasks using a fraction of the energy previously required

A replacement for traditional motors could enhance next-gen robots
2024-03-20
(Press-News.org) Whether it’s a powered prosthesis to assist a person who has lost a limb or an independent robot navigating the outside world, we are asking machines to perform increasingly complex, dynamic tasks. But the standard electric motor was designed for steady, ongoing activities like running a compressor or spinning a conveyor belt – even updated designs waste a lot of energy when making more complicated movements.

Researchers at Stanford University have invented a way to augment electric motors to make them much more efficient at performing dynamic movements through a new type of actuator, a device that uses energy to make things move. Their actuator, published March 20 in Science Robotics, uses springs and clutches to accomplish a variety of tasks with a fraction of the energy usage of a typical electric motor.

“Rather than wasting lots of electricity to just sit there humming away and generating heat, our actuator uses these clutches to achieve the very high levels of efficiency that we see from electric motors in continuous processes, without giving up on controllability and other features that make electric motors attractive,” said Steve Collins, associate professor of mechanical engineering and senior author of the paper.

Springing into action The actuator works by harnessing the ability of springs to produce force without using energy – springs resist being stretched out and try to rebound to their natural length when released. When the actuator is, say, lowering something heavy, the researchers can engage the springs so that they stretch, taking some of the load off the motor. Then, by locking the springs in the stretched-out position, that energy can be stored to assist the motor in another task later on.

The key to engaging and disengaging the springs quickly and efficiently is a series of electroadhesive clutches. Each rubber spring is sandwiched between two clutches: one that connects the spring to the joint to assist the motor and one that locks the spring in a stretched position when it’s not being used.

These clutches consist of two electrodes – one attached to the spring and one attached to the frame or motor – that slide smoothly past each other when they aren’t active. To engage a clutch, the researchers apply a large voltage to one of its electrodes. The electrodes are drawn together with an audible click – like a faster, stronger version of the static electricity that makes a balloon stick to the wall after you rub it on carpet. Releasing the spring is as simple as grounding the electrode and dropping its voltage back to zero.

“They’re lightweight, they’re small, they’re really energy efficient, and they can be turned on and off rapidly,” said Erez Krimsky, lead author of the paper, who recently completed his PhD in Collins’ lab. “And if you have lots of clutched springs, it opens up all these exciting possibilities for how you can configure and control them to achieve interesting outcomes.”

The actuator built by Collins and Krimsky has a motor augmented with six identical clutched springs, which can be engaged in any combination. The researchers ran the design through a series of challenging motion tests that included rapid acceleration, changing loads, and smooth, steady movement. At every task, the augmented motor used at least 50 percent less power than a standard electric motor and, in the best case, reduced power consumption by 97 percent.

Motors that can do more With significantly more efficient motors, robots could travel further and accomplish more. A robot that can run for a full day, instead of only an hour or two before needing to recharge, has the potential to undertake much more meaningful tasks. And there are plenty of unsafe situations – involving toxic materials, hazardous environments, or other dangers – where we would much prefer to send a robot than risk a person.

“This has implications for assistive devices like prosthetics or exoskeletons as well,” Krimsky said. “If you don’t need to constantly recharge them, they can have a more significant impact for the people that use them.”

Currently, it takes a few minutes for the actuator’s controller to calculate the most efficient way to use the combination of springs to accomplish a brand new task, but the researchers have plans to shorten that timeframe considerably. They envision a system that can learn from previous tasks, creating a growing database of increasingly efficient movements and using artificial intelligence to intuit how to effectively accomplish something new.

“There are a bunch of little control and design tweaks we’d like to make, but we think that the technology is really at a place where it’s ready for commercial translation,” Collins said. “We’d be excited to try to spin this out from the lab and start a company to begin making these actuators for the robots of the future.”

Collins is a member of Stanford Bio-X, the Wu Tsai Human Performance Alliance, and the Wu Tsai Neurosciences Institute; and a faculty affiliate of the Stanford Institute for Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence.

This work was funded by the National Science Foundation.

To read all stories about Stanford science, subscribe to the biweekly Stanford Science Digest.

END

[Attachments] See images for this press release:
A replacement for traditional motors could enhance next-gen robots A replacement for traditional motors could enhance next-gen robots 2

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Icy impacts: Planetary scientists use physics and images of impact craters to gauge the thickness of ice on Europa

2024-03-20
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Sometimes planetary physics is like being in a snowball fight. Most people, if handed an already-formed snowball, can use their experience and the feel of the ball to guess what kind of snow it is comprised of: packable and fluffy, or wet and icy. Using nearly the same principles, planetary scientists have been able to study the structure of Europa, Jupiter’s icy moon. Additional Information When worlds collide: Studying impact craters to uncover the secrets of the solar system Breaking in a new planet Purdue scientists and engineers push the boundaries of space knowledge, studying the ...

Ancient giant dolphin discovered in the Amazon

Ancient giant dolphin discovered in the Amazon
2024-03-20
Measuring between 3 to 3.5 meters, 16 million years old: Paleontologists from the University of Zurich have announced the discovery of a new species of freshwater dolphin in the Peruvian Amazon region. Surprisingly, its closest living relatives can be found in the river dolphins of South Asia. River dolphins are among the rarest modern cetaceans, with most extant species critically endangered. Despite their similar appearance, however, these animals are not directly related, but represent the late survivors of different cetacean groups that once inhabited our planet. An international ...

Study suggests an ‘odor sensor’ may explain male and female differences in blood pressure

Study suggests an ‘odor sensor’ may explain male and female differences in blood pressure
2024-03-20
Using data from both mice and humans, a Johns Hopkins Medicine research team has found that a cell surface protein that senses odors and chemicals may be responsible for — and help explain — sex differences in mammalian blood pressure. The unusual connection between such protein receptors and sex differences in blood pressure, reported in the March 20 issue of Science Advances, may lead to a better understanding of long known differences in blood pressure between females and males.  Blood ...

Repairing patients’ dura more durably

Repairing patients’ dura more durably
2024-03-20
Repairing patients’ dura more durably Highly adhesive and mechanically strong Dural Tough Adhesive addresses multiple limitations in the repair of the dural membrane lining the brain and spinal cord after trauma and surgeries. By Benjamin Boettner (BOSTON) — The dural membrane (dura) is the outermost of three meningeal layers that line the central nervous system (CNS), which includes the brain and spinal cord. Together, the meninges function as a shock-absorber to protect the CNS against trauma, circulate nutrients throughout the CNS, as well as remove waste. The dura also is a critical biological barrier that contains cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) surrounding ...

Quantum talk with magnetic disks

Quantum talk with magnetic disks
2024-03-20
Quantum computers promise to tackle some of the most challenging problems facing humanity today. While much attention has been directed towards the computation of quantum information, the transduction of information within quantum networks is equally crucial in materializing the potential of this new technology. Addressing this need, a research team at the Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf (HZDR) is now introducing a new approach for transducing quantum information: the team has manipulated quantum bits, so called qubits, by harnessing the magnetic field ...

Earlier retirement for people with chronic musculoskeletal pain

Earlier retirement for people with chronic musculoskeletal pain
2024-03-20
Frequent musculoskeletal pain is linked with an increased risk of exiting work and retiring earlier, according to a new study from the University of Portsmouth. The paper published this week in open-access journal PLOS ONE found the association between musculoskeletal pain and retiring earlier persisted even after accounting for working conditions, job satisfaction and sex. Dr Nils Niederstrasser and colleagues used data on 1,156 individuals aged 50+ living in England who took part in the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing. Over the course of the 14-year data collection period, 1,073 of the individuals retired. The researchers found that people with musculoskeletal ...

Tiny magnetic implants enable wireless healthcare monitoring

2024-03-20
A millimeter-scale, chip-less and battery-less implant can wirelessly monitor a series of parameters within your body and communicate with a wearable device attached on the skin. In a recent study published in the journal Science Advances, researchers from Peking University have unveiled a miniaturized implantable sensor capable of health monitoring without the need of transcutaneous wires, integrated circuit chips, or bulky readout equipment, thereby reducing infection risks, improving biocompatibility, and enhancing portability. Han Mengdi from Peking University, the lead researcher of ...

New study suggests that while social media changes over decades, conversation dynamics stay the same

2024-03-20
Published in Nature, a new study has identified recurring, ‘toxic’ human conversation patterns on social media, which are common to users irrespective of the platform used, the topic of discussion, and the decade in which the conversation took place. In particular, the study suggests that prolonged conversations on social media are more prone to toxicity, and polarisation, when divergent viewpoints from debate lead to an escalation of online disagreement. Contrary to the prevailing assumption, the study suggests that toxic interactions do not deter users from engagement, they actively participate in conversations. It also suggests that toxicity ...

Study finds non-immune brain cells can acquire immune memory, may drive CNS pathologies like multiple sclerosis

2024-03-20
Immunological memory — the ability to respond to a previously encountered antigen, or foreign substance, with greater speed and intensity on re-exposure is a hallmark of adaptive immunity. Innate immune cells also develop metabolic and epigenetic memories that boost their responses, but it was previously unknown if non-immune cells like astrocytes, which interact with immune cells and contribute to inflammation in the central nervous system (CNS), acquire aspects of immune memory of encountering ...

Canada should ban all unhealthy food marketing children may be exposed to

2024-03-20
Quebec City, March 20, 2024–Canada should ban marketing of unhealthy foods wherever children may be exposed, whether on TV, social media or billboards. This is one of the main conclusions of a Canada-wide study involving more than fifty food and nutrition experts made public today by a team from Université Laval's Faculty of Agriculture and Food Sciences.   The study, conducted as part of a research program funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, also recommends better funding ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

CMD-OPT model enables the discovery of a potent and selective RIPK2 inhibitor as preclinical candidate for the treatment of acute liver injury

Melatonin receptor 1a alleviates sleep fragmentation-aggravated testicular injury in T2DM by suppression of TAB1/TAK1 complex through FGFR1

Single-cell RNA sequencing reveals Shen-Bai-Jie-Du decoction retards colorectal tumorigenesis by regulating the TMEM131–TNF signaling pathway-mediated differentiation of immunosuppressive dendritic ce

Acta Pharmaceutica Sinica B Volume 15, Issue 7 Publishes

New research expands laser technology

Targeted radiation offers promise in patients with metastasized small cell lung cancer to the brain

A high clinically translatable strategy to anti-aging using hyaluronic acid and silk fibroin co-crosslinked hydrogels as dermal regenerative fillers

Mount Sinai researchers uncover differences in how males and females change their mind when reflecting on past mistakes

CTE and normal aging are difficult to distinguish, new study finds

Molecular arms race: How the genome defends itself against internal enemies

Tiny chip speeds up antibody mapping for faster vaccine design

KTU experts reveal why cultural heritage is important for community unity

More misfolded proteins than previously known may contribute to Alzheimer’s and dementia

“Too much going on”: Autistic adults overwhelmed by non-verbal social cues

What’s driving America’s deep freezes in a warming world?

A key role of brain protein in learning and memory is deciphered by scientists

Heart attacks don’t follow a Hollywood script

Erin M. Schuman wins 2026 Nakasone Award for discovery on neural synapse function and change during formation of memories

Global ocean analysis could replace costly in-situ sound speed profiles in seafloor positioning, study finds

Power in numbers: Small group professional coaching reduces rates of physician burnout by nearly 30%

Carbon capture, utilization, and storage: A comprehensive review of CCUS-EOR

New high-temperature stable dispersed particle gel for enhanced profile control in CCUS applications

State gun laws and firearm-related homicides and suicides

Use of tobacco and cannabis following state-level cannabis legalization

Long-term obesity and biological aging in young adults

Eindhoven University of Technology and JMIR Publications announce unlimited open access publishing agreement

Orphan nuclear receptors in metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease development

A technological breakthrough for ultra-fast and greener AI

Pusan National University researchers identify key barriers hindering data-driven smart manufacturing adoption

Inking heterometallic nanosheets: A scalable breakthrough for coating, electronics, and electrocatalyst applications

[Press-News.org] A replacement for traditional motors could enhance next-gen robots
Researchers at Stanford have designed a spring-assisted actuator – a device that can accomplish dynamic tasks using a fraction of the energy previously required