Authors:
Evan Krisdityawan
1
;
Sho Yokota
1
;
Akihiro Matsumoto
1
;
Daisuke Chugo
2
;
Satoshi Muramatsu
3
and
Hiroshi Hashimoto
4
Affiliations:
1
Department of Mechanical Engineering, Toyo University, Saitama, Japan
;
2
School of Engineering, Kwansei Gakuin University, Sanda, Japan
;
3
Department of Applied Computer Engineering, Tokai University, Hiratsuka, Japan
;
4
Advanced Institute of Industrial Technology, Shinagawa, Japan
Keyword(s):
Soft Robotic Tongue, Pneumatic Network, Fabrication, English Pronunciation.
Abstract:
A novel soft robotic tongue mimicking the movements of English pronunciation was proposed, aiming at the learning support for English pronunciation. A soft robotic tongue’s system design and actuator arrangements have been proposed, and the Finite Element Methods (FEM) simulation for each deformation has been conducted. In this paper, we discussed two milestones: fabrication and experimental evaluation. The fabrication, molding, and casting method was applied to the model, and it was manufactured five times bigger than the original size of a human tongue. A silicone rubber Ecoflex 00-30 was utilized and poured into the mold that was preliminary printed with a 3D printer. Moreover, an experiment was conducted to confirm and evaluate the deformation patterns of English pronunciation movements. A ruler was used to measure the parameters in each deformation, such as bend and flap angle, and bulge height. It presented that bend and bulge deformations between the fabricated soft robotic to
ngue and simulated FEM results were likely the same; however, the flap deformation slightly differed in the experimental evaluation.
(More)