No description available.

Nanopositioners have been developed with electrostatic, piezoelectric, magnetic, thermal, and electrochemical actuators. They move with as many as six degrees of freedom; some are composed of multiple stages that stack together. Both macro-scale and micro-scale nanopositioners have been fabricated. A summary of recent research in micropositioning and nanopositioning is presented to set the background for this work. This research project demonstrates that a dual-stage nanopositioner can be created with microelectromechanical systems technology such that the two stages are integrated on a single silicon chip. A nanopositioner is presented that has two stages, one for coarse motion and one for fine motion; both are fabricated by surface micromachining. The nanopositioner has one translational degree of freedom. Thermal microactuators operate both stages. The first stage includes a bistable mechanism: it travels 52 micrometers between two discrete positions. The second stage is mounted on the first stage and moves continuously through an additional 8 micrometers in the same direction as the first stage. Two approaches to the control of the second stage are evaluated: first, an electrical input is transmitted to an actuator that moves with the first stage; second, a mechanical input is applied to an amplifier mechanism mounted on the first stage after completing the coarse motion. Four devices were designed and fabricated to test these approaches; the one that performed best was selected to fulfill the objective of this work. Thermal analysis of the actuators was performed with previously developed tools. Pseudo-rigid-body models and finite element models were created to analyze the mechanical behavior of the devices. The nanopositioners were surface micromachined in a two-layer polysilicon process. Experiments were performed to characterize the resolution, repeatability, hysteresis, and drift of the second stages of the nanopositioners with open-loop control. Position measurements were obtained from scanning electron micrographs by a numerical procedure, which is described in detail. The selected nanopositioner demonstrated 170-nanometer resolution and repeatability within 37 nanometers. The hysteresis of the second stage was 6% of its full range. The nanopositioner drifted 25 nanometers in the first 60 minutes of operation with a time constant of about 6 minutes. The dual-stage nanopositioner may be useful for applications such as variable optical attenuators or wavelength-specific add--drop devices.

This study examines the use of embedded shape memory alloy (SMA)actuators for adaptive control of the themomechanical response of composite structures. Control of static and dynamic responses are demonstrated including thermal buckling, thermal post-buckling, vibration, sonic fatigue, and acoustic transmission. A thermomechanical model is presented for analyzing such shape memory alloy hybrid composite (SMAHC) structures exposed to thermal and mechanical loads. Also presented are (1) fabrication procedures for SMAHC specimens, (2) characterization of the constituent materials for model quantification, (3) development of the test apparatus for conducting static and dynamic experiments on specimens with and without SMA, (4) discussion of the experimental results, and (5) validation of the analytical and numerical tools developed in the study. The constitutive model developed to describe the mechanics of a SMAHC lamina captures the material nonlinearity with temperature of the SMA and matrix material if necessary. It is in a form that is amenable to commercial finite element (FE) code implementation. The model is valid for constrained, restrained, or free recovery configurations with appropriate measurements of fundamental engineering properties. This constitutive model is used along with classical lamination theory and the FE method to formulate the equations of motion for panel-type structures subjected to steady-state thermal and dynamic mechanical loads. Mechanical loads that are considered include acoustic pressure, inertial (base acceleration), and concentrated forces. Four solution types are developed from the governing equations including thermal buckling, thermal post-buckling, dynamic response, and acoustic transmission/radiation. These solution procedures are compared with closed-form and/or other known solutions to benchmark the numerical tools developed in this study. Practical solutions for overcoming fabrication issues and obtaining repeatable specimens are demonstrated. Results from characterization of the SMA constituent are highlighted with regard to their impact on thermomechanical modeling. Results from static and dynamic tests on a SMAHC beam specimen are presented, which demonstrate the enormous control authority of the SMA actuators. Excellent agreement is achieved between the predicted and measured responses including thermal buckling, thermal post-buckling, and dynamic response due to inertial loading. The validated model and thermomechanical analysis tools are used to demonstrate a variety of static and dynamic response behaviors associated with SMAHC structures. Topics of discussion include the fundamental mechanics of SMAHC structures, control of static (thermal buckling and post-buckling) and dynamic responses (vibration, sonic fatigue, and acoustic transmission), and SMAHC design considerations for these applications. The dynamic response performance of a SMAHC panel specimen is compared to conventional response abatement approaches. SMAHCs are shown to have significant advantages for vibration, sonic fatigue, and noise control. / Ph. D.

Despite great progress of lab-on-a-chip (LoC) technology platforms in the last 30 years, there is a lack of standardized microfluidic components, real on-chip utomation and progressive functional scalability of the fluidic circuits. Hydrogel-based microfluidic circuits have a high scaling potential and provide on-chip automation, but are complex in system design. An advanced circuit concept for planar microfluidic chip architectures, originating from the early era of the semiconductor-based resistor-transistor-logic (RTL) is presented and the hydrogel-based chemical volume phase transition transistor (CVPT) for logic gate operations is implemented. The circuit concept (CVPT-RTL) is robust and simple in design, feasible with common materials and manufacturing techniques of the LoC technology. Thereby, three major challenges are solved: contamination issues, maintaining the signal compliance for cascadability, and chemical signal inversion. As a central element, a CVPT cascode is introduced. The functionality of the concept is verified by a 24 h test of the NAND gate operation and a self-automated chemofluidic analog-to-digital converter, utilized as interface between bioreactors and extended microfluidic logic circuits. Moreover, the CVPT-RTL cascode demonstrates the expected selfstabilizing performance of the NAND gate. Accompanying simulations of the component behavior based on a network description implemented in Matlab Simscape match with the experimental results.

No description available.

As new emission regulations in the EU set more stringent requirements on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, original equipment manufacturers (OEM) must find ways to align with the EUs sustainability goals. By transitioning to more electrically driven machinery, operators of off-highway vehicles can benefit from better fuel economy, lower greenhouse gas emissions and less air pollution. This study explores the possibilities of electrifying the hydraulic tilt function of the Steelwrist X18 Tiltrotator, a critical component in off-highway vehicle equipment. According to Steelwrist, other original equipment manufacturers such as VOLVO CE have asked when Steelwrist can deliver a fully electric tiltrotator. Key findings show that the chosen electromechanical actuator concept, the EWELLIX CASM-100-RA, with a 8.2 [kW] motor kit, have acceptable performance, but does not to meet every specified requirement. Installing two CASM-100-RA actuators on the X18 results in a 17% weight increase that would adversely affects the excavator’s load-carrying capacity and work efficiency. Despite the drawbacks, the paper acknowledges that the other considered concepts would have resulted in even heavier and/or bulkier solutions / I och med nya utsläppsregler inom EU som ställer högre krav på växthusgasutsläpp måste tillverkare av originalutrustning hitta sätt att anpassa sig till EU:s hållbarhetsmål. Genom att övergå till mer elektriskt drivna maskiner kanförare av anläggningsfordon dra nytta av bättre bränsleekonomi, lägre utsläpp av växthusgaser och minskade luftföroreningar. Denna studie utforskar möjligheterna att elektrifiera den hydrauliska tiltfunktionen på Steelwrist X18 Tiltrotator, ett vanligt verktyg inom anläggningsindustrin. Enligt Steelwrist har andra tillverkare av originalutrustning, såsom VOLVO CE, visat intresse för när Steelwrist kan leverera en helt elektrisk tiltrotator. Elektrifieringen av anläggningsindustrin är fortfarande i sin linda och endast kompaktfordon finns för närvarande på marknaden. Detta är en anledning till att det ännu inte finns en lösning på detta problem. En annan förklaring är den oöverträffade effekttätheten hos konventionella hydraulcylindrar, vilket gör dem svåra att ersätta. Forskningsfrågorna besvarades genom en grundlig undersökning av den senaste tekniken och experiment för att testa den hydrauliska prestandan hos X18 Tiltrotator. Huvudresultaten visar att det valda EMA-konceptet, specifikt EWELLIX CASM-100-RA med 8,2 [kW]-motor, inte uppfyller de inledande kravspecifikationerna på grund av en oacceptabel ökning av den totala vikten på X18 Tiltrotator .Viktökningen skulle påverka grävmaskinens lastkapacitet och arbetskapacitet negativt. Trots nackdelarna tilläggs det att de andra övervägda koncepten skulle ha resulterat i ännu tyngre och/eller skrymmande lösningar. Denna masteruppsats har belyst de mest utmanande aspekterna av att elektrifiera tiltfunktionen i X18 tiltrotatorn. Dessutom har betydelsen av omfattande och detaljerad prestandadata varit en annan nyckelinsikt i projektet. Prestandadata har visat sig vara avgörande vid utformningen av elektriska tiltaktuatorer för denna tillämpning. Framtida arbete kan ytterligare undersöka anpassade elektromekaniska aktuatorer.

No description available.

No description available.

Ionic self-assembled multilayer (ISAM) thin film nanostructures, including highly porous and conductive gold nanoparticles (GNP), and highly porous and thermally stable silica nanoparticles (SNP), were fabricated via the layer-by-layer (LbL) self-assembly technique. Their application in ionic polymer-metal composite (IPMC) electromechanical bending actuators and microfabricated gas chromatography (microGC) devices were investigated and significant performance improvements of these devices were achieved. IPMC bending actuators, consisting of an ionic electroactive polymer (iEAP) membrane as backbone, ionic liquids (IL) as electrolyte, and ISAM GNP thin film as porous electrode, were fabricated and investigated. The influences of humidity, conductive network composite (CNC), and IL uptake on the bending performance were examined and discussed. An equivalent circuit model to simulate both the electrical and mechanical responses was also proposed and experimentally verified. Moreover, IPMC actuators made from other newly synthesized iEAP membranes were fabricated and tested. Some of them showed promising performance that was comparable or even better as compared to the ones made from Nafion. LbL fabricated ISAM SNPs thin film coatings were also applied in the microGC devices including micro fabricated thermal preconcentrators (microTPC) and separation columns (microSC) as adsorbent and stationary phase materials, respectively. New fabrication approaches were developed to selectively coat uniform conformal ISAM SNP coatings in these devices with different 3D microstructures. Thus, functionalized microTPCs and microSCs showed good performance, which can be further improved by using the ISAM SNPs coating as a nanotemplate for modifying additional polymer adsorbents or as the anchor sites for incorporating functional molecules for targeting detection. / Ph. D.

Many landing sites of scientific interest on Mars including most of the Southern Hemisphere at elevations above 2km Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter reference are inaccessible due to current limitations in precision entry guidance and payload deceleration. Precision guidance and large payload deceleration is challenging due to the thin Martian atmosphere, large changes in free stream conditions during entry, and aerothermal and aerodynamic instability concerns associated with control systems with direct external flow field interaction. Such risks have descoped past Mars missions to unguided entry with the exception of Mars Science Laboratory's (MSL) bank angle guidance. Consequently, prior to MSL landing ellipses were on the order of 100's of km. MSL has approached the upper limit of payload deceleration capability for rigid, blunt body sphere cone aeroshells used on all successful Mars entry missions. Hypersonic Inflatable Aerodynamic Decelerators (HIADS) are in development for larger payload deceleration capability through inflated aeroshell diameters greater than rigid aeroshells constrained by the launch rocket diameter, but to date there has been limited dynamics, control, and guidance development for their use on future missions. This dissertation develops internal moving mass actuator (IMMA) control systems for improving Mars precision entry guidance of rigid capsules and demonstrating precision guidance capability for HIADs. IMMAs provide vehicle control moments without direct interaction with the external flow field and can increase payload mass delivered through reducing propellant mass for control and using portions of the payload for the IMMAs. Dynamics models for entry vehicles with rotation and translation IMMAs are developed. IMMA control systems using the models are developed for two NASA vehicle types: a 2.65 m, 602 kg Mars Phoenix-sized entry capsule and an 8.3 m, 5.9 metric ton HIAD approaching payload requirements for robotic precursor missions for future human missions. Linear Quadratic controllers with integral action for guidance command tracking are developed for translation and rotation IMMA configurations. Angle of attack and sideslip guidance laws are developed as an alternative to bank angle guidance for decoupling range and cross-range control for improved precision entry guidance. A new variant of the Apollo Earth return terminal guidance algorithm is implemented to provide the closed-loop angle of attack range control commands. Nonlinear simulations of the entire 8 degree of freedom closed-loop systems demonstrate precision guidance to nominal trajectories and final targets for off-nominal initial entry conditions for flight path angle, range, cross-range, speed and attitude. Mechanical power studies for IMMA motion show rotation IMMA require less total mechanical power than translation actuators, but both systems have low nominal mechanical power requirements (below 100 Watts). Precision guidance for both systems to terminal targets greater than 38 km down-range from an open-loop ballistic entry is shown for low mechanical power, low CM displacement, (< 4.5 in) and at low internal velocities (< 2 in/s) over significant dynamic pressure changes. The collective precision guidance results and low mechanical power requirements show IMMA based entry guidance control systems constitute a promising alternative to thruster based control systems for future Mars landers. / Ph. D.