The ready availability of low cost microprocessors and mechantronic components allow industrial users to consider adopting servo-controlled pneumatic actuators with an acceptable cost. This leads to a demand for a software tool in pneumatic actuator system CAS/CAD. Therefore, the paper introduces a software tool developed by the research group in Liverpool for pneumatic actuator system computer...

Parallel robots exhibit high stiffness, low weight and low dynamic forces, mostly because of the closed loop chains implied by their structure, and allow the positioning of the actuators on the truss. These characteristics outline the possibility of actuating such kind of robotic devices by means of pneumatic actuators. The position control of pneumatic cylinders through proportional valves sat...

This work describes a method for the simulation of multiple pneumatic actuators in a context of multi body mechanical systems. The model of the single actuator is based on elliptical approximation of non-linear pneumatic devices; friction and sticking phenomena are considered as well. Pneumatic devices introduce forces and new state variables into the complete multibody system: we developed a s...

Pneumatic artificial muscles are pneumatic devices with practical and various applications as common actuators. They, as human muscles, work in agonistic-antagonistic way, giving a traction force only when supplied by compressed air. The state of the art of soft pneumatic actuators is here analyzed: different models of pneumatic muscles are considered and evolution lines are presented. Then, th...

In this study, a non-contact type intraocular pressure (IOP) measuring system using reflected pneumatic pressure is proposed to overcome the disadvantages of existing measurement systems. A ring-type nozzle, a key component in the proposed system, is designed via computational fluid analysis. It predicts the reflected pneumatic pressure based on the nozzle exit angle and inner and outer diamete...

Pneumatic artificial muscles (PAMs) are becoming more commonly used as actuators in modern robotics. The most made and common type of these artificial muscles in use is the McKibben artificial muscle that was developed in 1950’s. This paper presents the geometric model of PAM and different Matlab models for pneumatic artificial muscles. The aim of our models is to relate the pressure and length...

The utilization of pneumatic muscles in various industrial applications is still in an early phase, due to the relative newness of these components. In this paper the authors present results of the ongoing theoretical and experimental research on the operational behaviour of pneumatic muscles. Information is presented concerning muscle structure, as well as data on the generated forces, positio...

Fault diagnosis of pneumatic system of automatic production line is studied in this paper. A fuzzy neural network fault diagnosis expert system and pneumatic circuit fault diagnosis instrument are designed. The experiment device is built as well. In the end some experiments are done, whose results show that the expert system using fuzzy neural network can diagnose fast and truly fault of pneuma...

Pneumatic muscles are innovative tensile actuators consisting of a fiber-reinforced vulcanised rubber tubing with appropriate connectors at both ends. The working principle is based on a rhombical fibre structure that leads to a muscle contraction in longitudinal direction when the pneumatic muscle is filled with compressed air. This contraction can be used for actuation purposes. Pneumatic mus...

Background: Among various intracorporeal lithotripters, pneumatic lithotripter has become the widely used tool for the treatment of urinary stones. Recently the holmium: YAG laser has been used with a wide range of potential urological applications, including intracorporeal lithotripsy of urinary calculi. Purpose: Compare the effectiveness and complications of treatment for ureteric stones betw...