A Novel Shape Memory Alloy (SMA) Wire-Based Clutch Design and Performance Test
Abstract: The clutch system is increasingly utilized in a large range of industrial applications due to its working characteristics (i.e. clamping and releasing). However, in conventional design of the clutch, the electromagnet is mostly selected as the actuator to drive the motion, which makes the clutch Bulk and heavy. In this paper, a novel SMA wire-based clutch is proposed to overcome the aforementioned disadvantages of conventional clutches, aiming to reduce the weight and shorten the response time. To achieve this, an SMA wire was selected and twisted around the clutch to drive the motion of the moveable platform. The voltage-displacement response of the SMA clutch was studied, and the appropriate controlling voltage and heating time were obtained. After that, the tracking response of the SMA clutch was checked to study the dynamic working characteristics. It can be found that the proposed SMA clutch can track the given sinusoidal trajectory with high accuracy in the clamping area (i.e. 3.4%). Promisingly, with the studies of the proposed SMA clutch, it can be used in environments (e.g. satellite) where the weight is restricted.
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