| dc.description.abstract | Energetically passive devices are rigid and complaint mechanisms that can amplify force as well as store and release energy with specific timings and forces. Designing a compliant mechanism for a given task, i.e “inverse design” of unpowered mechanisms, can be done numerically using topology optimization. However, topology optimization is computationally intensive and time consuming, and may not be guaranteed to find a near optimal design. Here we use approximation theory and the property that compliant mechanisms can be modeled by a scalar potential energy function to provide an approximate analytical solution to the inverse design of passive mechanisms. Using the proposed method, we created novel multi-stable mechanical
structures which can (i) store energy like a spring with an unusual torque -deflection curve that decreases as the deflection angle is increased, (ii) store energy like a spring that has three equilibrium lengths of equal
potential energy like three valleys of the same depth, and (iii) store energy like a spring but with three equilibrium lengths of increasing potential energy like a staircase. | |
