BYOE: Wacky-Waving-Non-Inflatable-Arm-Flailing-Tube-Man for Teaching Soft Robotics

William Y Heil-heintz; Jacob Wojcicki; Mitja Trkov; Wei Xue; Smitesh Bakrania; Cassandra Sue Ellen Jamison

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Conference: 2024 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition
Location: Portland, Oregon
Publication Date: June 23, 2024
Start Date: June 23, 2024
End Date: July 12, 2024
Conference Session: ELOS Technical Session 6: Bring Your Own Experiment!
Tagged Division: Experimentation and Laboratory-Oriented Studies Division (DELOS)
Permanent URL: https://peer.asee.org/48438

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Dr. Mitja Trkov is an assistant professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Rowan University, NJ. His research interests include soft robotics, human-machine interactions, wearable system, ergonomics, and biomechanics. He received his Ph.D. degree in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering from Rutgers University, New Brunswick in 2016 and his B.S. degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Ljubljana, Slovenia in 2007. Before joining Rowan, he was a postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City, UT.

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Wei Xue Rowan University orcid.org/0000-0001-6550-5366

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Dr. Wei Xue is currently an associate professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Rowan University. He received his B.S. and M.S. degrees in electrical engineering from Shandong University, China, and his Ph.D. degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities. His research focuses on functional materials, soft robotics, and engineering education.

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Smitesh Bakrania Rowan University orcid.org/0000-0003-0663-0241

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Dr. Smitesh Bakrania is an associate professor in Mechanical Engineering at Rowan University. He received his Ph.D. from University of Michigan in 2008 and his B.S. from Union College in 2003. His research interests include combustion synthesis of nanoparticles and combustion catalysis using nanopar- ticles. He is also involved in developing educational apps for instructional and research purposes.

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Cassandra Sue Ellen Jamison Rowan University orcid.org/0000-0002-0253-1636

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Cassandra (Cassie) Jamison is an Assistant Professor in the Experiential Engineering Education Department at Rowan University (Glassboro, NJ). Her research interests focus on understanding and improving the learning that occurs in experiential, out-of-class activities for engineering students. Cassie previously received a B.A. in Engineering Sciences at Wartburg College (Waverly, IA) and her M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in BME from the University of Michigan (Ann Arbor, MI).

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Abstract

The emerging field of soft robotics has a wide range of applications in many different fields. Due to its recent emergence and development, it is important to formally expose students interested in STEM to this rapidly developing interdisciplinary field. We have addressed this issue by assembling the undergraduate engineering students to create a hands-on experience for college-level engineering students, allowing them to become familiar with a subset of soft-robotics-relevant scientific concepts and exciting them about the field. Students introduced to this project will be exposed to various topics of soft materials, magnetism, and parametric design that interplay in the design of soft robotic systems. This paper presents a “Wacky-Waving-Non-Inflatable-Arm-Flailing-Tube-Man” that undergraduate students can design, build, analyze, and test. The project can be tailored as a classroom activity, a laboratory exercise, or a group project. Students will design several tests to determine the best design to achieve a tailored flailing configuration. The two major elements of their designs that students will be able to modify include: 1) a selection among a subset of provided silicone elastomers that they will select based on their material properties (modulus of rigidity, hyperelasticity, etc.) and 2) the integration of ferromagnetic particles into the elastomer matrix or embedding a magnetic structure inside their design as a magnetic core. Once students have selected their design parameters and constructed their ‘Flailing-Tube-Man’, their design will be driven by external electromagnets also designed by the students. Through an iterative design process, the students can fine-tune their design and control the flailing parameters defined by the instructor. The motivation for this activity is to reinforce students’ knowledge of soft material properties and electromagnetics concepts. The knowledge and skills used in this project form the building blocks for various soft robotic applications. By using an iterative design aimed at meeting the ‘flailing’ criteria of a customer (their instructor), this project also endeavors to teach students elements of parametric design and control principles by having them conduct their own tests to determine the best way for their design to flail about. The combination of electromagnetics and materials science is also an excellent opportunity to reinforce concepts taught within a typical engineering program. This paper details the supplies needed, possible methods of construction, and suggested learning outcomes associated with the activity.

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Format

Heil-heintz, W. Y., & Wojcicki, J., & Trkov, M., & Xue, W., & Bakrania, S., & Jamison, C. S. E. (2024, June), BYOE: Wacky-Waving-Non-Inflatable-Arm-Flailing-Tube-Man for Teaching Soft Robotics Paper presented at 2024 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, Portland, Oregon. https://peer.asee.org/48438

TY - CPAPER
AB - The emerging field of soft robotics has a wide range of applications in many different fields. Due to its recent emergence and development, it is important to formally expose students interested in STEM to this rapidly developing interdisciplinary field. We have addressed this issue by assembling the undergraduate engineering students to create a hands-on experience for college-level engineering students, allowing them to become familiar with a subset of soft-robotics-relevant scientific concepts and exciting them about the field. Students introduced to this project will be exposed to various topics of soft materials, magnetism, and parametric design that interplay in the design of soft robotic systems. This paper presents a “Wacky-Waving-Non-Inflatable-Arm-Flailing-Tube-Man” that undergraduate students can design, build, analyze, and test. The project can be tailored as a classroom activity, a laboratory exercise, or a group project. Students will design several tests to determine the best design to achieve a tailored flailing configuration. The two major elements of their designs that students will be able to modify include: 1) a selection among a subset of provided silicone elastomers that they will select based on their material properties (modulus of rigidity, hyperelasticity, etc.) and 2) the integration of ferromagnetic particles into the elastomer matrix or embedding a magnetic structure inside their design as a magnetic core. Once students have selected their design parameters and constructed their ‘Flailing-Tube-Man’, their design will be driven by external electromagnets also designed by the students. Through an iterative design process, the students can fine-tune their design and control the flailing parameters defined by the instructor. The motivation for this activity is to reinforce students’ knowledge of soft material properties and electromagnetics concepts. The knowledge and skills used in this project form the building blocks for various soft robotic applications. By using an iterative design aimed at meeting the ‘flailing’ criteria of a customer (their instructor), this project also endeavors to teach students elements of parametric design and control principles by having them conduct their own tests to determine the best way for their design to flail about. The combination of electromagnetics and materials science is also an excellent opportunity to reinforce concepts taught within a typical engineering program. This paper details the supplies needed, possible methods of construction, and suggested learning outcomes associated with the activity.
AU - William Y Heil-heintz
AU - Jacob Wojcicki
AU - Mitja Trkov
AU - Wei Xue
AU - Smitesh Bakrania
AU - Cassandra Sue Ellen Jamison
CY - Portland, Oregon
DA - 2024/06/23
PB - ASEE Conferences
TI - BYOE: Wacky-Waving-Non-Inflatable-Arm-Flailing-Tube-Man for Teaching Soft Robotics
UR - https://peer.asee.org/48438
ER -