Sung, Cynthia
Email Address
ORCID
Disciplines
Search Results
Now showing 1 - 10 of 13
Publication Repeated Jumping with the REBOund: Self-Righting Jumping Robot Leveraging Bistable Origami-Inspired Design(2022-03-01) Sun, Yuchen; Sung, Cynthia R.; Sung, Cynthia R.Repeated jumping is crucial to the mobility of jumping robots. In this paper, we extend upon the REBOund jumping robot design, an origami-inspired jumping robot that uses the Reconfigurable Expanding Bistable Origami (REBO) pattern as its body. The robot design takes advantage of the pattern's bistability to jump with controllable timing. For jump repeatedly, we also add self-righting legs that utilize a single motor actuation mechanism. We describe a dynamic model that captures the compression of the REBO pattern and the REBOund self-righting process and compared it to the physical robot. Our experiments show that the REBOund is able to successfully self-right and jump repeatedly over tens of jumps. Supplemental video: https://youtu.be/LoCXcwIxCgUPublication Design and Control of a Tunable-Stiffness Coiled-Spring Actuator(2023-05-29) Misra, Shivangi; Mitchell, Mason; Chen, Rongqian; Sung, Cynthia; Misra, Shivangi; Mitchell, Mason; Chen, Rongqian; Sung, CynthiaWe propose a novel design for a lightweight and compact tunable stiffness actuator capable of stiffness changes up to 20x. The design is based on the concept of a coiled spring, where changes in the number of layers in the spring change the bulk stiffness in a near-linear fashion. We present an elastica nested rings model for the deformation of the proposed actuator and empirically verify that the designed stiffness-changing spring abides by this model. Using the resulting model, we design a physical prototype of the tunable-stiffness coiled-spring actuator and discuss the effect of design choices on the resulting achievable stiffness range and resolution. In the future, this actuator design could be useful in a wide variety of soft robotics applications, where fast, controllable, and local stiffness change is required over a large range of stiffnesses.Publication A Tendon-Driven Origami Hopper Triggered by Proprioceptive Contact Detection(2020-04-06) Chen, Wei-Hsi; Misra, Shivangi; Caporale, J. Diego; Yang, Shu; Sung, Cynthia R.; Misra, Shivangi; Caporale, J. Diego; Koditschek, Daniel E; Yang, Shu; Sung, Cynthia R.We report on experiments with a laptop-sized (0.23m, 2.53kg), paper origami robot that exhibits highly dynamic and stable two degree-of-freedom (circular boom) hopping at speeds in excess of 1.5 bl/s (body-lengths per second) at a specific resistance O(1) while achieving aerial phase apex states 25% above the stance height over thousands of cycles. Three conventional brushless DC motors load energy into the folded paper springs through pulley-borne cables whose sudden loss of tension upon touchdown triggers the release of spring potential that accelerates the body back through liftoff to flight with a 20W powerstroke, whereupon the toe angle is adjusted to regulate fore-aft speed. We also demonstrate in the vertical hopping mode the transparency of this actuation scheme by using proprioceptive contact detection with only motor encoder sensing. The combination of actuation and sensing shows potential to lower system complexity for tendon-driven robots. For more information: Kod*lab (link to kodlab.seas.upenn.edu)Publication Origami-Inspired Robot that Swims via Jet Propulsion(2021-07-13) Yang, Zhiyuan; Chen, Dongsheng; Levine, David J; Sung, Cynthia R.; Yang, Zhiyuan; Chen, Dongsheng; Levine, David J; Sung, Cynthia R.Underwater swimmers present unique opportunities for using bodily reconfiguration for self propulsion. Origami-inspired designs are low-cost, fast to fabricate, robust, and can be used to create compliant mechanisms useful in energy efficient underwater locomotion. In this paper, we demonstrate an origami-inspired robot that can change its body shape to ingest and expel water, creating a jet that propels it forward similarly to cephalopods. We use the magic ball origami pattern, which can transform between ellipsoidal (low volume) and spherical (high volume) shapes. A custom actuation mechanism contracts the robot to take in fluid, and the inherent mechanics of the magic ball returns the robot to its natural shape upon release. We describe the design and control of this robot and verify its locomotion in a water tank. The resulting robot is able to move forward at 6.7 cm/s (0.2 body lengths/s), with a cost of transport of 2.0.Publication Reconfiguring Non-Convex Holes in Pivoting Modular Cube Robots(2021-07-07) Feshbach, Daniel Adam; Sung, Cynthia; Feshbach, Daniel Adam; Sung, CynthiaWe present an algorithm for self-reconfiguration of admissible 3D configurations of pivoting modular cube robots with holes of arbitrary shape and number. Cube modules move across the surface of configurations by pivoting about shared edges, enabling configurations to reshape themselves. Previous work provides a reconfiguration algorithm for admissible 3D configurations containing no non-convex holes; we improve upon this by handling arbitrary admissible 3D configurations. The key insight specifies a point in the deconstruction of layers enclosing non-convex holes at which we can pause and move inner modules out of the hole. We prove this happens early enough to maintain connectivity, but late enough to open enough room in the enclosing layer for modules to escape the hole. Our algorithm gives reconfiguration plans with O(n^2) moves for n modules.Publication Kinegami: Algorithmic Design of Compliant Kinematic Chains From Tubular Origami(2022-10-12) Chen, Wei-Hsi; Yang, Woohyeok; Peach, Lucien; Koditschek, Daniel E; Sung, Cynthia R; Chen, Wei-Hsi; Yang, Woohyeok; Peach, Lucien; Koditschek, Daniel E; Sung, Cynthia ROrigami processes can generate both rigid and compliant structures from the same homogeneous sheet material. In this article, we advance the origami robotics literature by showing that it is possible to construct an arbitrary rigid kinematic chain with prescribed joint compliance from a single tubular sheet. Our “Kinegami” algorithm converts a Denavit–Hartenberg specification into a single-sheet crease pattern for an equivalent serial robot mechanism by composing origami modules from a catalogue. The algorithm arises from the key observation that tubular origami linkage design reduces to a Dubins path planning problem. The automatically generated structural connections and movable joints that realize the specified design can also be endowed with independent user-specified compliance. We apply the Kinegami algorithm to a number of common robot mechanisms and hand-fold their algorithmically generated single-sheet crease patterns into functioning kinematic chains. We believe this is the first completely automated end-to-end system for converting an abstract manipulator specification into a physically realizable origami design that requires no additional human input.Publication A Programmably Compliant Origami Mechanism for Dynamically Dexterous Robots(2020-01-09) Chen, Wei-Hsi; Mishra, Shivangi; Gao, Yuchong; Lee, Young-Joo; Yang, Shu; Sung, Cynthia R.; Mishra, Shivangi; Gao, Yuchong; Lee, Young-Joo; Koditschek, Daniel; Yang, Shu; Sung, Cynthia R.We present an approach to overcoming challenges in dynamical dexterity for robots through programmably compliant origami mechanisms. Our work leverages a one-parameter family of flat sheet crease patterns that folds into origami bellows, whose axial compliance can be tuned to select desired stiffness. Concentrically arranged cylinder pairs reliably manifest additive stiffness, extending the programmable range by nearly an order of magnitude and achieving bulk axial stiffness spanning 200–1500 N/m using 8 mil thick polyester-coated paper. Accordingly, we design origami energy-storing springs with a stiffness of 1035 N/m each and incorporate them into a three degree-of-freedom (DOF) tendon-driven spatial pointing mechanism that exhibits trajectory tracking accuracy less than 15% rms error within a (2 cm)^3 volume. The origami springs can sustain high power throughput, enabling the robot to achieve asymptotically stable juggling for both highly elastic (1 kg resilient shotput ball) and highly damped (“medicine ball”) collisions in the vertical direction with apex heights approaching 10 cm. The results demonstrate that “soft” robotic mechanisms are able to perform a controlled, dynamically actuated task.Publication Push-On Push-Off: A Compliant Bistable Gripper with Mechanical Sensing and Actuation(2021-03-13) McWilliams, Jessica; McWilliams, Jessica; Sung, Cynthia; Friedman, Jason; Sung, CynthiaGrasping is an essential task in robotic applications and is an open challenge due to the complexity and uncertainty of contact interactions. In order to achieve robust grasping, systems typically rely on precise actuators and reliable sensing in order to control the contact state. We propose an alternative design paradigm that leverages contact and a compliant bistable mechanism in order to achieve "sensing" and "actuation" purely mechanically. To grasp an object, the manipulator holding our end effector presses the bistable mechanism into the object until snap-through causes the gripper to enclose it. To release the object, the tips of the gripper are pushed against the ground, until rotation of the linkages causes snap-through in the other direction. This push-on push-off scheme reduces the complexity of the grasping task by allowing the manipulator to automatically achieve the correct grasping behavior as long as it can get the end effector to the correct location and apply sufficient force. We present our dynamic model for the bistable gripping mechanism, propose an optimized result, and demonstrate the functionality of the concept on a fabricated prototype. We discuss our stiffness tuning strategy for the 3D printed springs, and verify the snap-through behavior of the system using compression tests on an MTS machine. Acknowledgements Support for this project has been provided in part by NSF Grant No. 1138847 and DGE-1845298. We also thank Terry Kientz, Jeremy Wang, Peter Szczesniak, and Joe Valdez for their assistance with the fabrication, and Neal Tinaikar for assistance with initial prototypes. We are grateful.Publication Drag Coefficient Characterization of the Origami Magic Ball (Inproceedings)(2023-08-29) Chen, Guanyu; Chen, Dongsheng; Weakly, Jessica; Sung, Cynthia; Chen, Guanyu; Chen, Dongsheng; Weakly, Jessica; Sung, CynthiaThe drag coefficient plays a vital role in the design and optimization of robots that move through fluids. From aircraft to underwater vehicles, their geometries are specially engineered so that the drag coefficients are as low as possible to achieve energy-efficient performances. Origami magic balls are 3-dimensional reconfigurable geometries composed of repeated simple waterbomb units. Their volumes can change as their geometries vary and we have used this concept in a recent underwater robot design. This paper characterizes the drag coefficient of an origami magic ball in a wind tunnel. Through dimensional analysis, the scenario where the robot swims underwater is equivalently transferred to the situation when it is in the wind tunnel. With experiments, we have collected and analyzed the drag force data. It is concluded that the drag coefficient of the magic ball increases from around 0.64 to 1.26 as it transforms from a slim ellipsoidal shape to an oblate spherical shape. Additionally, three different magic balls produce increases in the drag coefficient of between 57% and 86% on average compared to the smooth geometries of the same size and aspect ratio. The results will be useful in future designs of robots using waterbomb origami in fluidic environments.Publication Fabrication and Characterization of I-cord Knitted SMA Actuators(2021-03-13) Kim, Christopher Y; Chien, Athena; Tippur, Megha; Sung, Cynthia; Kim, Christopher Y; Chien, Athena; Tippur, Megha; Sung, CynthiaKnitted SMA actuators provide greater actuation stroke than single-strand SMA wire actuators by leveraging its knitted structure. However, due to short-circuiting through interlacing knit loops, existing knitted SMA sheet actuators are unsuitable for joule-heating actuation when uniform contractile actuation is desired. We explore an axially symmetric tubular i-cord knitted actuator as a possible solution. The fabrication process of an i-cord knitted SMA actuator and its electrical, thermal, and mechanics models are presented. After modifying existing models for single-strand SMA wire and adjusting their parameters, the proposed electrical, thermal, and mechanics models were verified with experimental results. Acknowledgements Support for this project has been provided in part by NSF REU EEC-1659190 and by the GeorgiaTech Stamps President's Scholars program.