Spiral Spring-Supported Force Plate with an External Eddy Current Displacement Sensor

This study proposes a force plate with a planar spring and an eddy current displacement sensor to measure the ground reaction force (GRF) of a small insect and reveal its motion characteristics. The proposed force plate comprises a circular aluminum plate, four aluminum springs symmetrically connect...

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Main Authors: Yuta Kawasaki, Hidetoshi Takahashi
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2022-12-01
Series:Actuators
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0825/12/1/16
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author Yuta Kawasaki
Hidetoshi Takahashi
author_facet Yuta Kawasaki
Hidetoshi Takahashi
author_sort Yuta Kawasaki
collection DOAJ
description This study proposes a force plate with a planar spring and an eddy current displacement sensor to measure the ground reaction force (GRF) of a small insect and reveal its motion characteristics. The proposed force plate comprises a circular aluminum plate, four aluminum springs symmetrically connected to the plate, and an eddy current displacement sensor under the plate. The diameter and thickness of the fabricated plate were 8 and 0.1 mm, respectively. The spring width was 0.4 mm. When a force is applied to the plate, the plate moves vertically downward. Then, an eddy current displacement sensor detects the plate displacement without contact. The applied force can be measured using Hooke’s law. The proposed force plate has the advantages of ease of fabrication and cost-effectiveness. The central displacement variation and resonant frequency of the designed springs were evaluated by simulation. Then, we calibrated the fabricated force plate to obtain the sensitivity variation and resonant frequency. The experimental results suggest that the proposed force plate can effectively measure the GRF of a small insect.
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spelling doaj.art-1f3d13b1de5d44429618ecd7d276dc722023-11-30T23:17:13ZengMDPI AGActuators2076-08252022-12-011211610.3390/act12010016Spiral Spring-Supported Force Plate with an External Eddy Current Displacement SensorYuta Kawasaki0Hidetoshi Takahashi1Department of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Science and Technology, Keio University, 3-14-1 Hiyoshi, Kouhoku-ku, Yokohama 223-8522, JapanDepartment of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Science and Technology, Keio University, 3-14-1 Hiyoshi, Kouhoku-ku, Yokohama 223-8522, JapanThis study proposes a force plate with a planar spring and an eddy current displacement sensor to measure the ground reaction force (GRF) of a small insect and reveal its motion characteristics. The proposed force plate comprises a circular aluminum plate, four aluminum springs symmetrically connected to the plate, and an eddy current displacement sensor under the plate. The diameter and thickness of the fabricated plate were 8 and 0.1 mm, respectively. The spring width was 0.4 mm. When a force is applied to the plate, the plate moves vertically downward. Then, an eddy current displacement sensor detects the plate displacement without contact. The applied force can be measured using Hooke’s law. The proposed force plate has the advantages of ease of fabrication and cost-effectiveness. The central displacement variation and resonant frequency of the designed springs were evaluated by simulation. Then, we calibrated the fabricated force plate to obtain the sensitivity variation and resonant frequency. The experimental results suggest that the proposed force plate can effectively measure the GRF of a small insect.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0825/12/1/16force plateeddy current sensorlaser machiningground reaction forcesmall insect
spellingShingle Yuta Kawasaki
Hidetoshi Takahashi
Spiral Spring-Supported Force Plate with an External Eddy Current Displacement Sensor
Actuators
force plate
eddy current sensor
laser machining
ground reaction force
small insect
title Spiral Spring-Supported Force Plate with an External Eddy Current Displacement Sensor
title_full Spiral Spring-Supported Force Plate with an External Eddy Current Displacement Sensor
title_fullStr Spiral Spring-Supported Force Plate with an External Eddy Current Displacement Sensor
title_full_unstemmed Spiral Spring-Supported Force Plate with an External Eddy Current Displacement Sensor
title_short Spiral Spring-Supported Force Plate with an External Eddy Current Displacement Sensor
title_sort spiral spring supported force plate with an external eddy current displacement sensor
topic force plate
eddy current sensor
laser machining
ground reaction force
small insect
url https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0825/12/1/16
work_keys_str_mv AT yutakawasaki spiralspringsupportedforceplatewithanexternaleddycurrentdisplacementsensor
AT hidetoshitakahashi spiralspringsupportedforceplatewithanexternaleddycurrentdisplacementsensor