Annu Int Conf IEEE Eng Med Biol Soc. 2021 Nov;2021:4792-4795. doi: 10.1109/EMBC46164.2021.9629613.
Robots can protect healthcare workers from being infected by the COVID-19 and play a role in throat swab sampling operation. A critical requirement in this process is to maintain a constant force on the tissue for ensuring a safe and good sampling. In this study, we present the design of a disposable mechanism with two non-linear springs to achieve a 0.6 N constant force within a 20 mm displacement. The nonlinear spring is designed through optimization based on Finite Element Simulation and Genetic Algorithm. Prototype of the mechanism is made and tested. The experimental results show that the mechanism can provide 0.67±0.04 N and 0.57±0.02 N during its compression and return process. The proposed design can be extended to different scales and used in a variety of scenario where safe interacting with human is required.
机器人可以保护医护人员免受 COVID-19 感染，并在咽喉拭子采样操作中发挥作用。在这个过程中，一个关键的要求是对组织保持恒定的力，以确保安全和良好的采样。在本研究中，我们提出了一种具有两个非线性弹簧的一次性机构设计，以在 20mm 的位移内实现 0.6N 的恒定力。非线性弹簧是通过基于有限元仿真和遗传算法的优化设计的。制作并测试了该机构的原型。实验结果表明，该机构在压缩和回弹过程中分别可以提供 0.67±0.04N 和 0.57±0.02N 的力。所提出的设计可以扩展到不同的规模，并应用于需要与人安全交互的各种场景。
