• Journal of the Korean Society for Precision Engineering
• /
• v.13 no.9
• /
• pp.94-103
• /
• 1996

This paper is concerned with the theroretical and experimental study on the force control of a miniature robotic finger that grasps an object at three other positions with the fingertip. The artificial finger is uniform flexible cantilever beam equipped with a distributed set of compact grasping force secnsors. Control action is applied by a qiexoceramic bimorph strip placed at the base of the finger. The mathematical model of the assembled electro-mechanical system is developed. The distributed sensors are described by a set of concentrated mass-spring system. The formulated equations of motion are then applied to a control problem which the finger is commanded to grasp an object The PID-controller is introduced to drive the finger. The usefulness of the proposed control technique is verified by simulation and experiment.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Electrical and Electronic Material Engineers
• /
• v.25 no.10
• /
• pp.766-772
• /
• 2012

Spring supported piezoelectric cantilever structures (SPCS) were fabricated for vibration-based energy harvester application. We selected four elastic springs (A, B, C, and D type) as cantilever's supporter, each elastic spring has a different spring constant (S). The C type of SPCS ($S_C$: 4,649 N/m) showed a extremely low resonance frequency of 81 Hz along with the highest power output of 38.5 mW while the A type of SPCS ($S_A$: 40,629 N/m) didn't show a resonance frequency while. Therefore, it is considered that the lower spring constant lead to a lower resonance frequency of the SPCS. In addition, a tip mass (18 g) at one end of the SPCS could further reduce the resonance frequency without heavy degradation of power output.

• Transactions of the Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers A
• /
• v.20 no.9
• /
• pp.2812-2818
• /
• 1996

A cantilever beam with a mass and a spring at the end can be use to model a miniature flexible arm. It is necessary to know the natural frequencies and mode shapes to discuss its free vibration, especially when modal analysis is employed. A beam is clamped-free. In this paper we look at the lateral vibration of beams that have step changes in the properties of their cross sections. The frequency equation is derived by Bernoulli-Euler formulation and is sloved by the separation of variable. The parameters of the beam, 'mass and spring stiffness' are defined as nondimensionalized parameters for wide application of the results. According to the change of eigenvalues and mode shape are presented for this beam. The results presented are the eigenvalues and the natural frequencies for the first three modes of vibration. Results show that the parameters have a significant effect on the natural frequency.

• Smart Structures and Systems
• /
• v.7 no.4
• /
• pp.289-302
• /
• 2011

In marine clay deposits, naturally formed or artificially reclaimed, the evaluation and monitoring of the consolidation process has been a critical issue in civil engineering practices due to the time frame required for completing the consolidation process, which range from several days to several years. While complementing the conventional iconographic method suggested by Casagrande and recently developed in-situ techniques that measure the shear wave, this study suggests an alternative experimental procedure that can be used to evaluate the consolidation state of marine clay deposits using the shear wave velocity. A laboratory consolidation testing apparatus was implemented with bimorph-type piezoelectric bender elements to determine the effective stress-shear wave velocity (${\sigma}^{\prime}-V_s$) relationship with the marine clays of interest. The in-situ consolidation state was then evaluated by comparing the in-situ shear wave velocity data with the effective stress-shear wave velocity relationships obtained from laboratory experiments. The suggested methodology was applied and verified at three different sites in South Korea, i.e., a foreshore site in Incheon, a submarine deposit in Busan, and an estuary delta deposit in Busan. It is found that the shear wave-based experimental procedure presented in this paper can be effectively and reliably used to evaluate the consolidation state of marine clay deposits.

• Journal of rehabilitation welfare engineering & assistive technology
• /
• v.4 no.1
• /
• pp.63-70
• /
• 2010

Research and development of Assistive Technology (AT) for blind people is primarily focused on assisting mobility and improving access to information. Some particularly useful devices for aiding access to information and communication are DAISY players used with talking books, screen readers for reading screens, video magnifiers to aid low vision, Braille displays, and Braille PDAs. These essential devices have been successfully commercialized and have assisted many visually impaired people. Assistive technology devices for visually impaired people are called sensory substitution devices, because these devices substitute tactile or auditory functions for visual functions. The tactile interfaces of sensory substitution devices such as Braille displays and Braille PDAs have a bimorph type of piezoelectric actuator that forms a Braille (pin) of the Braille cells by moving up and down. KGS Corporation of Japan has more than 80% share of the worldwide market for these Braille cell actuators. Commercializing it for the first time in the world. This paper reviews the various endeavors in Japan in the research and development of tactile displays, such as Braille displays and Braille PDAs. Furthermore, it discusses sensory substitution devices that use tactile displays, focusing especially on the rotating Braille display we have developed.