• Transactions of the Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers A
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• v.34 no.8
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• pp.1119-1127
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• 2010

In this paper, the design and nonlinear simulation of a multistable electromagnetic microactuator, which provides four stable equilibrium positions within its operating range, have been discussed. Quadstable actuator motion has been made possible by using both X- and Y-directional bistable structures with snapping curved beams. Two pairs of the curved beams are attached to an inner frame in both X- and Y-directions to realize independent bistable behavior in each direction. For the actuation of the actuator at the micrometer scale, an electromagnetic actuation method in which Lorentz force is taken into consideration was used. By using this method, micrometer-stroke quadstability in a plane parallel to a substrate was possible. The feasibility of designing an actuator that can realize quadstable motion by using the electromagnetic actuation method has been thoroughly clarified by performing nonlinear static and dynamic analyses and electrothermal coupled-field analysis of the multistable microactuator.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Precision Engineering Conference
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• 2001.04a
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• pp.707-710
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• 2001

Brakes are one of the important safety parts in cars. The requirements of brakes in performance, in comfort, and working lifetime are high. This paper presents the static analysis on the stress and temperature of a automotive drum brake. The particular interest is the distribution of the contact pressure between brake lining and drum. The problems to be solved are the effects of friction coefficient, actuation force, temperature, and brake component's stiffness. The contact problem includes friction, and is solved using the ABAQUS.

• Journal of the Semiconductor & Display Technology
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• v.3 no.2
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• pp.23-26
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• 2004

Thin film is one of the most general structures used in micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS). To measure the mechanical properties of SU-8 film, tensile testing was adopted which offers not only elastic modulus but also yield strength and plastic deformation by load-displacement curve. Tensile testing system was constructed with linear guided servo motor for actuation, load cell for force measurement and dual microscope for strain measurement.

• Journal of Mechanical Science and Technology
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• v.20 no.11
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• pp.1914-1919
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• 2006

Recently, the microrobots powered by biological muscle actuators were proposed. Among the biological muscle actuators, frog muscle is well known as a good muscle actuator and has a large displacement, actuation forces and piezoelectric properties. Therefore, for the application of the biomimetic microrobot, this paper reports the electromechanical properties of frog muscle. First of all, the experimental setup has been established for measuring generative force of the frog muscle. Through the various electrical stimulating inputs to the frog muscle, we measured the contractile force of the frog muscle. From the measuring results, we found that the actuating contractile force responses of the frog muscle are determined by the amplitude, frequency, duty ratio, and wave form of the stimulation signal. This study will be beneficial for the development of the microrobot actuated by frog muscle.

• The Journal of Korea Robotics Society
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• v.6 no.3
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• pp.274-283
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• 2011

A simplified linearized dynamic equation for the propulsion force generation of an Ostraciiform fish robot with elastically jointed double caudal fins is derived in this paper. The caudal fin is divided into two segments and connected using an elastic joint. The second part of the caudal fin is actuated passively via the elastic joint connection by the actuation of the first part of it. It is demonstrated that the derived equation can be utilized for the design of effective caudal fins because the equation is given as an explicit form with several physical parameters. A simple Ostraciiform fish robot was designed and fabricated using a microprocessor, a servo motor, and acrylic plastics. Through the experiment with the fish robot, it is demonstrated that the propulsion force generated in the experiment matches well with the proposed equation, and the propulsion speed can be greatly improved using the elastically jointed double fins, improving the average speed more than 80%. Through numerical simulation and frequency domain analysis of the derived dynamic equations, it is concluded that the main reason of the performance improvement is resonance between two parts of the caudal fins.

• Proceedings of the Korean Vacuum Society Conference
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• 2014.02a
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• pp.258-258
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• 2014

Spark discharge in water generates shockwaves which have been utilized to generate mechanical actuation for potential use in pumping application. Discharge pulses of several microseconds generate shockwaves and vapor bubbles which subsequently displace the water for a period of milliseconds. Through the use of a sealed discharge chamber and metal bellow spring, the fluid motion can be used create an oscillating linear actuator. Continuous actuation of the bellow has been demonstrated through the use of high frequency spark discharge. Discharge in water forms a region of high electric field around the electrode tip which leads to the creation of a thermal plasma channel. This process produces fast thermal expansion, vapor and bubble generation, and a subsequent shockwave in the water which creates physical displacement of the water [1]. Previous work was been conducted to utilize the shockwave effect of spark discharge in water for the inactivation of bacteria, removal of mineral fouling, and the formation of sheet metal [2-4]. Pulses ranging from 25 to 40 kV and 600 to 900 A are generated inside of the chamber and the bellow motion is captured using a slow motion video camera. The maximum displacements measured are from 0.7 to 1.2 mm and show that there is a correlation between discharge energy input to the water and the displacement that is generated. Subsequent oscillations of the bellow are created by the spring force of the bellow and vapor in the chamber. Using microsecond shutter speed ICCD imaging, the development of the discharge bubble and spark can be observed and measured.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Precision Engineering
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• v.30 no.1
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• pp.39-46
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• 2013

Smart material such as SMA (Shape Memory Alloy) has been studied in various ways because it can perform continuous, flexible, and complex actuation in simple structure. Smart soft composite (SSC) was developed to achieve large deformation of smart material. In this paper, a shell actuator using woven type SSC was developed to enhance stiffness of the structure while keeping its deformation capacity. The fabricated actuator consisted of a flexible polymer and woven structure which contains SMA wires and glass fibers. The actuator showed various actuation motions by controlling a pattern of applied electricity because the SMA wires are embedded in the structure as fibers. To verify the actuation ability, we measured its maximum end-edge bending angle, twisting angle, and actuating force, which were $103^{\circ}$, $10^{\circ}$, and 0.15 N, respectively.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society For Composite Materials Conference
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• 2004.10a
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• pp.286-289
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• 2004

This paper presents the fatigue characteristics of LIPCA (LIghtweight Piezo-Composite Actuator) device system. The LIPCA device system is composed of a piezoelectric ceramic layer and fiber reinforced lightweight composite layers. Typically a PZT ceramic layer is sandwiched by a top fiber layer with low CTE (coefficient of thermal expansion) and base layers with high CTE. The advantages of the LIPCA design are weight reduction by using the lightweight fiber reinforced plastic layers without compromising the generation of high force and large displacement and design flexibility by selecting the fiber direction and the size of prepreg layers. To predict the degradation of actuation performance of LIPCA due to fatigue, the cyclic electric loading tests using PZT specimens were performed and the strain for a given excitation voltage was measured during the test. The results from the PZT fatigue test were implemented into CLPT (Classical Laminated Plate Theory) model to predict the degradation of LIPCA's actuation displacement. The fatigue characteristic of PZT was measured using a test system composed of a supporting jig, a high voltage power supplier, data acquisition board, PC, and evaluated.

• Journal of computational fluids engineering
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• v.10 no.2
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• pp.48-53
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• 2005

This work discusses the numerical analysis, the design and experimental test of the SMA actuator along with its capabilities and limitations. Convective heating and cooling using water actuate the SMA(Shape memory alloy) element of the actuator. The fuel such as propane, having a high energy density, is used as the energy source for the SMA actuator in order to increase power and energy density of the system, and thus in order to obviate the need for electrical power supplies such as batteries. The system is composed of a pump, valves, bellows, a heater(burner), control unit and a displacement amplification device. The experimental test of the SMA actuator system results in 150 MPa stress(force : 1560 N) with $3\%$ strain and 0.5 Hz. actuation frequency. The actuation frequency is compared with the prediction obtained from numerical analysis. For the designed SMA actuator system, the results of numerical analysis were utilized in determining design parameters and operating conditions.

• Transactions of the Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers A
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• v.31 no.2 s.257
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• pp.152-159
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• 2007

A study on the control of free vibration and stability characteristics of rotating hollow circular shafts subjected to compressive axial forces is presented in this paper. Both passive structural tailoring technique and active control scheme via collocated piezoelectric sensing and actuation are used in the study Gyroscopic and centrifugal forces combined with the compressive axial force contribute to the occurrence of divergence and flutter instabilities of the rotating shaft. The dual methodology based on the passive and active control schemes shows a high degree of efficiency toward postponement of these instabilities and expansion of the domain of stability of the system. The structural model of the shaft is based on an advanced thin-walled beam structure that includes the non-classical effects of transverse shear, anisotropy of constituent materials and rotatory inertia.