Creating pneumatic control mechanism for soft robotics

Abstract

Programmable logic controller is commonly used as the control system for pneumatic systems in industrial settings. Outside of programmable logic controllers, readily available controller options for hobbyist or small-scale use of pneumatic systems are rare. Nonetheless, these controllers are critical components for any soft pneumatic actuator systems as the actuation and sequence of actions are dependent on it. A properly implemented digital controller will allow the soft actuator to perform complex and precise task at a quicker pace by programming compared to a human operator on an analog controller. In this paper, the initial pneumatic system setup is controlled by an analog voltage controller which require a human operator to adjust the actuator’s pressure by using rotating a dial, resulting in an inefficient and slow system. To ensure the pneumatic system will be responsive and capable of performing programmable task when using the soft pneumatic actuator, a solution must be developed to substitute this voltage controller. This will be done using an Arduino to provide an input signal for the pneumatic regulator to control the vacuum pressure for a responsive soft pneumatic actuator. The Arduino also allow the user to develop a series of functions that they may find to be useful. Such as to set pressure at a certain value to have the actuator actuate immediately or have a slowly increasing pressure which allows actuator to slowly adjust its body. With a developed set of functions, the controller might prove to be a comparable option to programmable logic controller for small-scale pneumatic systems.