Development of the Auto-Fit Dial and its application to protective vests

This study proposes the Auto-Fit Dial, which is suitable for high-speed fitting; it includes a function that can wind wire at high speed using an energy storage–release mechanism. The Auto-Fit Dial can store energy in advance in the spiral spring via the rotation of the knob cover, and it releases the stored energy to wind the wire when required by pushing the knob cover. Firstly, the concept design and working principle of the Auto-Fit Dial are explained. Next, a detailed design and structural stability analysis of the mechanical components are described based on the design formula and finite-element analysis. An Auto-Fit Dial prototype is manufactured according to the detailed design with the weight, diameter, and height of 9.7 g, 30.5 mm, and 16.7 mm, respectively. The maximum number of rotations is 5.2 turns, which can wind a wire up to a length of 320 mm. The pulling force applied when the Auto-Fit Dial pulls the wire is initially measured as 5.10 N. The time required to wind a 320 mm wire is 0.015 s, which results in an average speed of 21.33 m/s. Moreover, the Auto-Fit Sleeve is fabricated and applied to the arm sleeve to verify the utility of the Auto-Fit Dial, which combines wire and fabric. Finally, the Auto-Fit Vest is developed by applying a protective vest to the Auto-Fit Dial.

Adjustable positive and negative hygrothermal expansion metamaterial inspired by the Maltese cross

A metamaterial that can manifest both positive and negative coefficients of moisture and thermal expansion is presented herein, based on inspiration from the Maltese cross. Each unit of the metamaterial consists of a pair of equal-armed crosses pin-joined at their junctions to permit rotation, but elastically restrained by a bimaterial spiral spring, and four pairs of hinge rods to translate the relative rotational motion of the pair of equal-armed crosses into translational motion of the connecting rods. The effective coefficients of moisture and thermal expansion models were developed for small and large changes in the hygrothermal conditions using infinitesimal (approximate) and finite (exact) motion analyses, respectively, with the former giving constant effective coefficients with respect to environmental changes. Results indicate that the approximate method underestimates the magnitude of both the effective expansion coefficients under cooling and drying but overestimates magnitudes of both coefficients during heating and moistening, and that the change in both expansion coefficients is more drastic during cooling and drying than during heating and moistening. In addition to providing another micro-lattice geometry for effecting expansion coefficients of either signs, this metamaterial exhibits auxetic property.

Detection of Mercury Ions in Water using a Plastic Optical Fiber Sensor

Research has been carried out on the detection of mercury ions in water using plastic optical fibers. Detection of mercury ions is done by immersing the optical fiber sensor in the HgCl2 solution, where both ends of the sensor are connected to an LED and a phototransistor. LED as a light source will emit light along with the optical fiber which will be received by the phototransistor. The optical light received by the phototransistor is converted into an electric voltage and given a gain in the differential amplifier. The output voltage in the form of an analog signal is converted into a digital signal on the Arduino UNO so that it can be read on a computer. The optical fiber as a sensor is made in two configurations, namely U configuration and spiral spring configuration. The jacket and the fiber optic cladding are peeled off and then covered with chitosan. Each configuration will be given a variation of the curve to analyze the characteristics of the sensor. The curvature can cause a large power loss resulting in attenuation of the light intensity of the LED received by the phototransistor. Apart from the effect of indentation on optical fibers, the output voltage measurement results are also influenced by the level of HgCl2 concentration. The best measurement results for mercury ion sensors in water using plastic optical fibers are obtained in a spiral spring configuration with a chitosan cladding with a variation of 6 coils which has a sensitivity of 104.065 mV/ppm.

An Auxetic System Based on Interconnected Y-Elements Inspired by Islamic Geometric Patterns

A 2D mechanical metamaterial exhibiting perfectly auxetic behavior, i.e., Poisson’s ratio of , is proposed in this paper drawing upon inspiration from an Islamic star formed by circumferential arrangement of eight squares, such as the one found at the exterior of the Ghiyathiyya Madrasa in Khargird, Iran (built 1438–1444 AD). Each unit of the metamaterial consists of eight pairs of pin-jointed Y-shaped rigid elements, whereby every pair of Y-elements is elastically restrained by a spiral spring. Upon intermediate stretching, each metamaterial unit resembles the north dome of Jameh Mosque, Iran (built 1087–1088 AD), until the attainment of the fully opened configuration, which resembles a structure in Agra, India, near the Taj Mahal. Both infinitesimal and finite deformation models of the effective Young’s modulus for the metamaterial structure were established using strain energy approach in terms of the spiral spring stiffness and geometrical parameters, with assumptions to preserve the eight-fold symmetricity of every metamaterial unit. Results indicate that the prescription of strain raises the effective Young’s modulus in an exponential manner until full extension is attained. This metamaterial is useful for applications where the overall shape of the structure must be conserved in spite of uniaxial application of load, and where deformation is permitted under limited range, which is quickly arrested as the deformation progresses.

Nonlinear multi-mode electromagnetic insole energy harvester for human-powered body monitoring sensors: Design, modeling, and characterization

The current research in wearable electronics is trending towards miniaturization, portability, integration, and sustainability, with the harvesting of biomechanical energy seen as a promising route to improve the sustainability of these wearable electronics. Efforts have been made to prolong operational life of these harvesters, to overcome energy dissipation, lowering resonant frequency, attaining multi-resonant states as well as widening frequency bandwidth of these biomechanical energy harvesters. Herein, an electromagnetic insole energy harvester (EMIEH), capable of efficiently harvesting low-frequency biomechanical energy, has been designed, fabricated and experimentally tested. The core component in the device is the vibrating circular spiral spring, holding two magnets as the driving force on the central platform of the circular spiral spring, and just in-line with the upper and lower wound coils. It has been shown that the harvester exhibits higher sensitivity to low-frequency external vibrations than conventional cantilever-based designs, and hence allows low impact energy harvesting such as harvesting energy from walking, running and jogging. The experimentally-tested four resonant frequencies occurred at 8.9 Hz, 28 Hz, 50 Hz, and 51 Hz. At the first resonant frequency of 8.9 Hz under base acceleration of 0.6 g, the lower electromagnetic generator can deliver a peak power of 664.36 µW and an RMS voltage of 170 mV to a matching load resistance of 43.5 Ω. The upper electromagnetic generator can contribute an RMS voltage of 85 mV, corresponding to the peak power of 175 µW across 41 Ω under the same experimental condition. Finally, the harvester has been integrated into the shoe and it is able to charge a 100 µF capacitor up to 1 Volt for about 8 minutes foot movement. The result has remarkable significance in the development of wireless body monitoring sensors applications.