Experimental and Numerical Analysis of the Deformation Behavior of Adaptive Fiber-Rubber Composites with Integrated Shape Memory Alloys

Fiber-reinforced rubber composites with integrated shape memory alloy (SMA) actuator wires present a promising approach for the creation of soft and highly elastic structures with adaptive functionalities for usage in aerospace, robotic, or biomedical applications. In this work, the flat-knitting technology is used to develop glass-fiber-reinforced fabrics with tailored properties designed for active bending deformations. During the knitting process, the SMA wires are integrated into the textile and positioned with respect to their actuation task. Then, the fabrics are infiltrated with liquid silicone, thus creating actively deformable composites. For dimensioning such structures, a comprehensive understanding of the interactions of all components is required. Therefore, a simulation model is developed that captures the properties of the rubber matrix, fiber reinforcement, and the SMA actuators and that is capable of simulating the active bending deformations of the specimens. After model calibration with experimental four-point-bending data, the SMA-driven bending deformation is simulated. The model is validated with activation experiments of the actively deformable specimens. The simulation results show good agreement with the experimental tests, thus enabling further investigations into the deformation mechanisms of actively deformable fiber-reinforced rubbers.     

Vibration Excitation and Suppression of a Composite Laminate Plate Using Piezoelectric Actuators

Piezoelectric (PZT) actuators bonded on a structure can be used to generate deformation and excite vibration for the shape control and vibration suppression, respectively. This article proposes a theoretical model for predicting vibrational response of a composite laminate plate with PZT actuators. The bending moment induced by the PZT actuator was obtained and applied on the composite laminate plate. Utilizing composite mechanics and plate theory, an analytical solution of the vibrational response of a composite laminate plate excited by the PZT actuator with oscillating voltage was derived. Furthermore, the finite element analysis using ANSYS software (2019 version) was carried out to compare with the proposed model with a good agreement. A parametric study was performed to investigate the influences of PZT location and frequency on the vibration. Numerical results illustrate that mode can be selectively excited provided the PZT actuator is placed in an appropriate location. Moreover, the proposed model was employed to predict the effectiveness of vibration suppression by distributed PZT actuators. The novelty of this work is that a complicated coupling problem between the composite plate and bonded PZT actuator is resolved into two simple problems, leading to a simple analytical solution for the vibrational response of a composite plate induced by PZT actuators. The proposed model has been successfully demonstrated its applications on the vibration excitation and suppression of a composite laminate plate.     

Amperometric Glucose Sensors: Sources of Error and Potential Benefit of Redundancy

Amperometric glucose sensors have advanced the care of patients with diabetes and are being studied to control insulin delivery in the research setting. However, at times, currently available sensors demonstrate suboptimal accuracy, which can result from calibration error, sensor drift, or lag. Inaccuracy can be particularly problematic in a closed-loop glycemic control system. In such a system, the use of two sensors allows selection of the more accurate sensor as the input to the controller. In our studies in subjects with type 1 diabetes, the accuracy of the better of two sensors significantly exceeded the accuracy of a single, randomly selected sensor. If an array with three or more sensors were available, it would likely allow even better accuracy with the use of voting.     

Safe glycemic management during closed-loop treatment of type 1 diabetes: the role of glucagon, use of multiple sensors, and compensation for stress hyperglycemia

Patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) must make frequent decisions and lifestyle adjustments in order to manage their disorder. Automated treatment would reduce the need for these self-management decisions and reduce the risk for long-term complications. Investigators in the field of closed-loop glycemic control systems are now moving from inpatient to outpatient testing of such systems. As outpatient systems are developed, the element of safety increases in importance. One such concern is the risk for hypoglycemia, due in part to the delayed onset and prolonged action duration of currently available subcutaneous insulin preparations. We found that, as compared to an insulin-only closed-loop system, a system that also delivers glucagon when needed led to substantially less hypoglycemia. Though the capability of glucagon delivery would mandate the need for a second hormone chamber, glucagon in small doses is tolerated very well. People with T1DM often develop hyperglycemia from emotional stress or medical stress. Automated closed-loop systems should be able to detect such changes in insulin sensitivity and adapt insulin delivery accordingly. We recently verified the adaptability of a model-based closed-loop system in which the gain factors that govern a proportional-integral-derivative-like system are adjusted according to frequently measured insulin sensitivity. Automated systems can be tested by physical exercise to increase glucose uptake and insulin sensitivity or by administering corticosteroids to reduce insulin sensitivity. Another source of risk in closed-loop systems is suboptimal performance of amperometric glucose sensors. Inaccuracy can result from calibration error, biofouling, and current drift. We found that concurrent use of more than one sensor typically leads to better sensor accuracy than use of a single sensor. For example, using the average of two sensors substantially reduces the proportion of large sensor errors. The use of more than two allows the use of voting algorithms, which can temporarily exclude a sensor whose signal is outlying. Elements such as the use of glucagon to minimize hypoglycemia, adaptation to changes in insulin sensitivity, and sensor redundancy will likely increase safety during outpatient use of closed-loop glycemic control systems.     

Continuous glucose monitoring considerations for the development of a closed-loop artificial pancreas system

Background

Commercialization of a closed-loop artificial pancreas system that employs continuous subcutaneous insulin infusion and interstitial fluid glucose sensing has been encumbered by state-of-the-art technology. Continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) devices with improved accuracy could significantly advance development efforts. However, the current accuracy of CGM devices might be adequate for closed-loop control.

Methods

The influence that known CGM limitations have on closed-loop control was investigated by integrating sources of sensor inaccuracy with the University of Virginia Padova Diabetes simulator. Non-glucose interference, physiological time lag and sensor error measurements, selected from 83 Enlite™ glucose sensor recordings with the Guardian® REAL-Time system, were used to modulate simulated plasma glucose signals. The effect of sensor accuracy on closed-loop controller performance was evaluated in silico, and contrasted with closed-loop clinical studies during the nocturnal control period.

Results

Based on n = 2472 reference points, a mean sensor error of 14% with physiological time lags of 3.28 ± 4.62 min (max 13.2 min) was calculated for simulation. Sensor bias reduced time in target for both simulation and clinical experiments. In simulation, additive error increased time <70 mg/dl and >180 mg/dl by 0.2% and 5.6%, respectively. In-clinic, the greatest low blood glucose index values (max = 5.9) corresponded to sensor performance.

Conclusion

Sensors have sufficient accuracy for closed-loop control, however, algorithms are necessary to effectively calibrate and detect erroneous calibrations and failing sensors. Clinical closed-loop data suggest that control with a higher target of 140 mg/dl during the nocturnal period could significantly reduce the risk for hypoglycemia.     

A Sensaptic ADAS Device Using Shape Memory Alloy Wires: Design and Control

This paper presents an active accelerator pedal system based on an integrated sensor and actuator using shape memory alloy (SMA) for speed control and to create haptics in the accelerator pedal. A device named sensaptics is developed with a pair of bi-functional SMA wires instrumented in a synergistic configuration function as an active sensor for positioning the accelerator pedal (pedal position sensing) to control the vehicle speed through electronic throttle and as a variable impedance actuator to generate active force (haptic) feedback to the driver. The reaction force emanated from the pedal alerts the driver and takes appropriate control action by slowing down the vehicle, in harmony with the road’s condition. The design is developed as a proof-of-concept device and is tested and evaluated in a real-time common rail diesel system for rail pressure regulation and over speeding tests, and the responses and performances are found to be promising.     

Determination of plasma glucose during rapid glucose excursions with a subcutaneous glucose sensor

Continuous glucose monitoring has the potential to improve glucose management and reduce the risk of hypoglycemia in individuals with diabetes. Accurate sensors may also allow the development of a closed-loop insulin delivery system. The purpose of this work was to determine the delay time associated with a subcutaneous glucose sensor during rapidly changing glucose excursions. Subcutaneous glucose sensors (Medtronic MiniMed, Inc., Northridge, CA) were inserted in five healthy men. After a 2-h stabilization period, a 3-h hyperglycemic (approximately 11 mM) clamp was performed followed by a 90-min period in which plasma glucose was allowed to decline to as low as 2.8 mM. Sensors were calibrated using two points (basal and hyperglycemia), and the calibrated sensor glucose measurements were compared with those from a reference analyzer (Beckman Instruments, Fullerton, CA). Response time was estimated from a first-order kinetic model. Plasma glucose levels, determined with the subcutaneous sensor, were highly correlated with those obtained with the reference glucose analyzer (r(2) = 0.91, p < 0.001; mean absolute difference of approximately 8%). The half-time for the sensor response was estimated to be 4.0 +/- 1.0 min. The subcutaneous glucose sensor has the potential to facilitate the detection of hypoglycemia and improve overall glycemic control when used in a real-time monitor. The rapid response should be sufficient to allow a fully automated closed-loop insulin delivery system to be developed based on the subcutaneous sensing site.     

Implantable continuous glucose sensors

Because of the limits of wearable needle-type or microdialysis-based enzymatic sensors in clinical use, fully implantable glucose monitoring systems (IGMS) represent a promising alternative. Long-term use reducing impact of invasiveness due to implantation, less frequent calibration needs because of a more stable tissue environment around the sensor and potential easier inclusion in a closed-loop insulin delivery system are the expected benefits of IGMS. First experiences with subcutaneous and intravenous IGMS have been recently collected in pilot studies. While no severe adverse events have been reported, biointerface issues have been responsible for the failures of IGMS. Tissue reactions around implanted subcutaneous devices and damages of intravenous sensors due to shearing forces of blood flow impaired IGMS function and longevity. In functioning systems, accuracy of glucose measurement reached satisfactory levels for average durations of about 120 days with subcutaneous IGMS and 259 days with intravenous sensors. Moreover, sensor information could help to improve time spent in normal glucose range when provided to patients wearing subcutaneous IGMS and allowed safe and effective closed-loop glucose control when intravenous sensors were connected to implanted pumps using intra-peritoneal insulin delivery. These data could open a favourable perspective for IGMS after improvement of biointerface conditions and if compatible with an affordable cost.     

The Effect of Encapsulation on Crack-Based Wrinkled Thin Film Soft Strain Sensors

Practical wearable applications of soft strain sensors require sensors capable of not only detecting subtle physiological signals, but also of withstanding large scale deformation from body movement. Encapsulation is one technique to protect sensors from both environmental and mechanical stressors. We introduced an encapsulation layer to crack-based wrinkled metallic thin film soft strain sensors as an avenue to improve sensor stretchability, linear response, and robustness. We demonstrate that encapsulated sensors have increased mechanical robustness and stability, displaying a significantly larger linear dynamic range (~50%) and increased stretchability (260% elongation). Furthermore, we discovered that these sensors have post-fracture signal recovery. They maintained conductivity to the 50% strain with stable signal and demonstrated increased sensitivity. We studied the crack formation behind this phenomenon and found encapsulation to lead to higher crack density as the source for greater stretchability. As crack formation plays an important role in subsequent electrical resistance, understanding the crack evolution in our sensors will help us better address the trade-off between high stretchability and high sensitivity.     

Low-Computational-Cost Technique for Modeling Macro Fiber Composite Piezoelectric Actuators Using Finite Element Method

The large number of interdigitated electrodes (IDEs) in a macro fiber composite (MFC) piezoelectric actuator dictates using a very fine finite element (FE) mesh that requires extremely large computational costs, especially with a large number of actuators. The situation becomes infeasible if repeated finite element simulations are required, as in control tasks. In this paper, an efficient technique is proposed for modeling MFC using a finite element method. The proposed technique replaces the MFC actuator with an equivalent simple monolithic piezoceramic actuator using two electrodes only, which dramatically reduces the computational costs. The proposed technique was proven theoretically since it generates the same electric field, strain, and displacement as the physical MFC. Then, it was validated with the detailed FE model using the actual number of IDEs, as well as with experimental tests using triaxial rosette strain gauges. The computational costs for the simplified model compared with the detailed model were dramatically reduced by about 74% for memory usage, 99% for result file size, and 98.6% for computational time. Furthermore, the experimental results successfully verified the proposed technique with good consistency. To show the effectiveness of the proposed technique, it was used to simulate a morphing wing covered almost entirely by MFCs with low computational cost.     

Extra-Soft Tactile Sensor for Sensitive Force/Displacement Measurement with High Linearity Based on a Uniform Strength Beam

The soft sensing system has drawn huge enthusiasm for the application of soft robots and healthcare recently. Most of them possess thin-film structures that are beneficial to monitoring strain and pressure, but are unfavorable for measuring normal displacement with high linearity. Here we propose soft tactile sensors based on uniform-strength cantilever beams that can be utilized to measure the normal displacement and force of soft objects simultaneously. First, the theoretical model of the sensors is constructed, on the basis of which, the sensors are fabricated for testing their sensing characteristics. Next, the test results validate the constructed model, and demonstrate that the sensors can measure the force as well as the displacement. Besides, the self-fabricated sensor can have such prominent superiorities as follows—it is ultra-soft, and its equivalent stiffness is only 0.31 N·m⁻¹ (approximately 0.4% of fat); it has prominent sensing performance with excellent linearity (R² = 0.999), high sensitivity of 0.533 pF·mm⁻¹ and 1.66 pF·mN⁻¹ for measuring displacement and force; its detection limit is as low as 70 μm and 20 μN that is only one-tenth of the touch of a female fingertip. The presented sensor highlights a new idea for measuring the force and displacement of the soft objects with broad application prospects in mechanical and medical fields.     

Application of a Single Cell Electric-SRR Metamaterial for Strain Evaluation

Strain is a crucial assessment parameter in structural health monitoring systems. Microstrip sensors have been one of the new types of sensors used to measure this parameter in recent years. So far, the strain directionality of these sensors and the methods of miniaturization have been studied. This article proposes the use of a single cell metamaterial as a resonator of the microstrip sensor excited through the microstrip line. The proposed solution allowed for significant miniaturization of the microstrip sensor, with just a slight decrease in sensitivity. The proposed sensor can be used to measure local deformation values and in places with a small access area. The presented sensor was validated using numerical and experimental methods. In addition, it was compared with a reference (rectangular geometry) microstrip sensor.     

In vivo performance evaluation of a transdermal near- infrared fluorescence resonance energy transfer affinity sensor for continuous glucose monitoring

The in vivo performance of a transdermal near-infrared fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) affinity sensor was investigated in hairless rats, in order to validate its feasibility for glucose monitoring in humans. The sensor itself consists of a small hollow fiber implanted in dermal skin tissue, containing glucose-sensitive assay chemistry composed of agarose-immobilized Concanavalin A (ConA) and free dextran. The glucose-dependent fluorescence change is based on FRET between near-infrared-compatible donor and quencher dyes that are chemically linked to dextran and ConA, respectively. We conducted an acute in vivo evaluation of transdermal sensors with an optical fiber-coupled setup over 4 h, and a chronic in vivo evaluation of fully implanted sensors for up to 16 days. The fiber-coupled sensors followed trends of blood glucose concentrations very well with a delay of less than 5 min. The acute performance of the implanted sensors at the day of implantation was similar to that of the fiber-coupled sensors. After 2 weeks the implanted sensors remained functional, evidenced by an adequate correlation between sensor signal and changes in blood glucose excursions, but exhibited delays of approximately 10-15 min. Preliminary characterization of host response showed signs of mild inflammations around the implanted sensor, which were characterized by formation of a 10-20-microm-thick collagen band, typical for capsule formation. An acute study of systemic ConA biotoxicity was also conducted. A histological analysis of various organs and of clinical chemistry data showed no significant differences between rats receiving intradermal injections of ConA at 10 times the concentration in the sensor and rats in a control group (injection of saline solution). The absence of a toxicological or systemic response to ConA at a 10-fold larger amount than in the sensor should dispel concerns over the in vivo safety of ConA-based sensors. This study clearly demonstrates the feasibility of the proposed transdermal FRET-based sensor interrogation concept for glucose monitoring.     

Silver Conductive Threads-Based Embroidered Electrodes on Textiles as Moisture Sensors for Fluid Detection in Biomedical Applications

Wearable sensors have become part of our daily life for health monitoring. The detection of moisture content is critical for many applications. In the present research, textile-based embroidered sensors were developed that can be integrated with a bandage for wound management purposes. The sensor comprised an interdigitated electrode embroidered on a cotton substrate with silver-tech 150 and HC 12 threads, respectively, that have silver coated continuous filaments and 100% polyamide with silver-plated yarn. The said sensor is a capacitive sensor with some leakage. The change in the dielectric constant of the substrate as a result of moisture affects the value of capacitance and, thus, the admittance of the sensor. The moisture sensor’s operation is verified by measuring its admittance at 1 MHz and the change in moisture level (1–50) µL. It is observed that the sensitivity of both sensors is comparable. The identically fabricated sensors show similar response and sensitivity while wash test shows the stability of sensor after washing. The developed sensor is also able to detect the moisture caused by both artificial sweat and blood serum, which will be of value in developing new sensors tomorrow for smart wound-dressing applications.     

Electrospinning Processing Techniques for the Manufacturing of Composite Dielectric Elastomer Fibers

Dielectric elastomers (DE) are novel composite architectures capable of large actuation strains and the ability to be formed into a variety of actuator configurations. However, the high voltage requirement of DE actuators limits their applications for a variety of applications. Fiber actuators composed of DE fibers are particularly attractive as they can be formed into artificial muscle architectures. The interest in manufacturing micro or nanoscale DE fibers is increasing due to the possible applications in tissue engineering, filtration, drug delivery, catalysis, protective textiles, and sensors. Drawing, self-assembly, template-direct synthesis, and electrospinning processing have been explored to manufacture these fibers. Electrospinning has been proposed because of its ability to produce sub-mm diameter size fibers. In this paper, we investigate the impact of electrospinning parameters on the production of composite dielectric elastomer fibers. In an electrospinning setup, an electrostatic field is applied to a viscous polymer solution at an electrode’s tip. The polymer composite with carbon black and carbon nanotubes is expelled and accelerated towards a collector. Factors that are considered in this study include polymer concentration, solution viscosity, flow rate, electric field intensity, and the distance to the collector.     

Ellipsoid bounding region-based ChainMail algorithm for soft tissue deformation in surgical simulation

Real-time modelling of force interaction with soft tissues is of great importance for interactive surgical simulation. This paper presents a new ChainMail algorithm for real-time modelling of soft tissue deformation under force interaction. Unlike traditional ChainMails using a box-shaped bounding region, the proposed method defines an ellipsoid-shaped bounding region according to the concept of principal strains in continuum mechanics to control the movement of chain elements. Based on this ellipsoid-shaped bounding region, new position adjustment rules are developed and further integrated with temporal-domain model dynamics for dynamic simulation of soft tissue deformation. Haptic interaction with soft tissues is achieved via force input, soft tissue deformation, and force feedback. Experimental results demonstrate that the proposed ChainMail can simulate soft tissue mechanical behaviours, accommodate isotropic and homogeneous, anisotropic and heterogeneous materials, and handle large deformation. The proposed ChainMail also requires only small computational time, capable of achieving real-time computational performance.     

Nanoporous Carbide-Derived Carbon Material-Based Linear Actuators

Devices using electroactive polymer-supported carbon material can be exploited as alternatives to conventional electromechanical actuators in applications where electromechanical actuators have some serious deficiencies. One of the numerous examples is precise microactuators. In this paper, we show for first time the dilatometric effect in nanocomposite material actuators containing carbide-derived carbon (CDC) and polytetrafluoroetylene polymer (PTFE). Transducers based on high surface area carbide-derived carbon electrode materials are suitable for short range displacement applications, because of the proportional actuation response to the charge inserted, and high Coulombic efficiency due to the EDL capacitance. The material is capable of developing stresses in the range of tens of N cm^-2. The area of an actuator can be dozens of cm², which means that forces above 100 N are achievable. The actuation mechanism is based on the interactions between the high-surface carbon and the ions of the electrolyte. Electrochemical evaluations of the four different actuators with linear (longitudinal) action response are described. The actuator electrodes were made from two types of nanoporous TiC-derived carbons with surface area (S_A) of 1150 m² g^-1 and 1470 m² g^-1, respectively. Two kinds of electrolytes were used in actuators: 1.0 M tetraethylammonium tetrafluoroborate (TEABF₄) solution in propylene carbonate and pure ionic liquid 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium trifluoromethanesulfonate (EMITf). It was found that CDC based actuators exhibit a linear movement of about 1% in the voltage range of 0.8 V to 3.0 V at DC. The actuators with EMITf electrolyte had about 70% larger movement compared to the specimen with TEABF₄ electrolyte.     

Fabry-Perot Interference Fiber Acoustic Wave Sensor Based on Laser Welding All-Silica Glass

Due to the small difference between the thermal expansion coefficients of silica optical fiber and silica glass, they are used as probe materials of optical fiber acoustic wave sensors. According to the light absorption characteristics of a pressure-sensitive silica diaphragm and silica glass, the laser welding of an all-silica Fabry–Perot (FP) interference optical fiber acoustic wave sensor with a CO₂ laser is proposed. For understanding the influence of thermal expansion of sealing air in an FP cavity and the drift of interference-intensity demodulation working point of a FP interference acoustic wave sensor, we designed a process for the laser welding of an ultra-thin silica diaphragm and sleeve and optical fiber and sleeve. The exhaust hole of the FP cavity is reserved in the preparation process, and an amplified spontaneous emission light source and a tunable optical-fiber FP filter are introduced to stabilize the working point. The sensor is tested with a 40 kHz sound vibration signal. The results show that the sound pressure sensitivity of the sensor to an acoustic source of 0.02–0.1 W/cm² is 6.59 mV/kPa. The linearity coefficient is 0.99975, indicating good linearity.     

R?ntgen’s electrode-free elastomer actuators without electromechanical pull-in instability

Electrical actuators made from films of dielectric elastomers coated on both sides with stretchable electrodes may potentially be applied in microrobotics, tactile and haptic interfaces, as well as in adaptive optical elements. Such actuators with compliant electrodes are sensitive to the pull-in electromechanical instability, limiting operational voltages and attainable deformations. Electrode-free actuators driven by sprayed-on electrical charges were first studied by Röntgen in 1880. They withstand much higher voltages and deformations and allow for electrically clamped (charge-controlled) thermodynamic states preventing electromechanical instabilities. The absence of electrodes allows for direct optical monitoring of the actuated elastomer, as well as for designing new 3D actuator configurations and adaptive optical elements.     

Development of Liquid Diene Rubber Based Highly Deformable Interactive Fiber-Elastomer Composites

The preparation of intelligent structures for multiple smart applications such as soft-robotics, artificial limbs, etc., is a rapidly evolving research topic. In the present work, the preparation of a functional fabric, and its integration into a soft elastomeric matrix to develop an adaptive fiber-elastomer composite structure, is presented. Functional fabric, with the implementation of the shape memory effect, was combined with liquid polybutadiene rubber by means of a low-temperature vulcanization process. A detailed investigation on the crosslinking behavior of liquid polybutadiene rubber was performed to develop a rubber formulation that is capable of crosslinking liquid rubber at 75 °C, a temperature that is much lower than the phase transformation temperature of SMA wires (90–110 °C). By utilizing the unique low-temperature crosslinking protocol for liquid polybutadiene rubber, soft intelligent structures containing functional fabric were developed. The adaptive structures were successfully activated by Joule heating. The deformation behavior of the smart structures was experimentally demonstrated by reaching a 120 mm bending distance at an activation voltage of 8 V without an additional load, whereas 90 mm, 70 mm, 65 mm, 57 mm bending distances were achieved with attached weights of 5 g, 10 g, 20 g, 30 g, respectively.