Project Goals Design and build a fully submersible robotic fish platform powered by McKibben muscles Execute realistic fish motion with a fish-like appearance Prove the feasibility of hydraulic, autonomous McKibben muscles Use the surrounding fluid as the actuation fluid

Background: What’s a McKibben Muscle? A fluid-pressure powered muscle Soft rubber tubing inside a braided sheath Radial expansion causes axial contraction Weaved Sleeve Pneumatic Bladder End Caps Air hose [1]

Background: What’s a McKibben Muscle? A fluid-pressure powered muscle Soft rubber tubing inside a braided sheath Radial expansion causes axial contraction Pressurized Fluid [1]

Why McKibben muscles? Smooth motion Lightweight, flexible Biomimetic High force to weight ratio [2] Applications to: – Soft or underwater robotics – Assistive technologies – Manufacturing [3]

Design Features Followed a formal design process, resulting in: Watertight polycarbonate enclosure Fluid system – Internal centrifugal pump – Solenoid valve bank – Hydraulic muscles Controls – Arduino, batteries, necessary circuitry – Bluetooth-controlled through smartphone app Motion parameters from literature – Body-caudal type locomotion, such as for salmon or bass – Can be represented as distinct segments with waveforms – Phase delay between waveforms captured in solenoid timing Appearance – Composite fiberglass shell with realistic paint-job – Rubberized Spandex fabric as tail skin [3]

Results

Summary Results: – Novel robotic design that utilizes hydraulic McKibben style muscles – Realistic, successful, inexpensive prototype – Future applications in underwater exploration Unique Design Features: – First autonomous design to utilize air muscles in hydraulic configuration – Uses surrounding medium as working fluid with no onboard storage requirements – Onboard controls with Bluetooth communication Applications – Underwater exploration – Military surveillance – Marine research

Acknowledgements

References [1] Laboratory, S. I., 2013, Development of High Hydraulic Pressure Mckibben Artificial Muscle and Its Application to Light Spreader, 8/6/13, u.ac.jp/kouseigaku/research/2009/system/spreader/reseach_e.htmlhttp:// u.ac.jp/kouseigaku/research/2009/system/spreader/reseach_e.html [2] Meller, M. A., Tiwari, R., Wajcs, K. B., Moses, C., Reveles, I., and Garcia, E., 2012, “Hydraulically actuated artificial muscles,” p L–83401L–17, [3] Fickenscher, W., Warren, J., Taddeo, J., Jasinski, C., and Mason, E., 2014, P14253 Home, 7/17/14, [4] Jian-Xin, X., Qinyuan, R., Wenchao, G., and Xue-Lei, N., 2012, "Mimicry of Fish Swimming Patterns in a Robotic Fish," Proc. Industrial Electronics (ISIE), 2012 IEEE International Symposium on, pp ,