Special Issue
  • Shape Memory Alloy-based Wearable Fabric Actuators: Form and Integration
  • Wonhee Ji*, Jaewoo Roh*, Hangyeol Baek*, Hyungbin Byun**, Hyunsoo Kim*, Jinwoo Jeong*, Il-Kwon Oh*†

  • * Mechanical Engineering Department, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology
    ** Robotics Program, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology

  • 형상기억합금 착용형 패브릭 액츄에이터 연구 동향: 구조 및 통합
  • 지원희* · 노재우* · 백한결* · 변형빈** · 김현수* · 정진우* · 오일권*†

  • This article is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0) which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Abstract

Shape Memory Alloys (SMAs) have garnered significant attention as smart materials for wearable haptic interfaces due to their high specific power density, silent operation, deformability by pre-design, and ability to generate biomimetic motion. A comprehensive view of wearable SMA-based fabric actuators, focusing on their structural forms and actuation behaviors is provided. SMA actuators, categorized into linear, spring, fabric, and composite multi-layer, are comparatively analyzed in their distinct deformation mechanisms and performance characteristics. Furthermore, various types of haptic feedback and the integration of SMA actuators into wearable systems are examined. Key application areas such as robotic teleoperation and extended reality (XR) are discussed, along with current technical challenges and future directions of the SMA fabric actuators.


형상기억합금(Shape Memory Alloy, SMA)은 높은 단위 출력밀도, 무소음 구동, 변형거동 설계, 생체 유사 운동 구현 등의 특성으로 착용형 햅틱 인터페이스에 적합한 스마트 소재로 주목받고 있다. 본 논문은 착용형 SMA 기반 패브릭 액츄에이터의 구조적 형태와 거동 특성을 중심으로 기술 동향을 종합적으로 고찰한다. SMA 액츄에이터 구조를 선형, 스프링형, 옷감형, 복합 다층형 등으로 분류한 후 각기 다른 변형 방식과 성능 특성을 비교하고, 다양한 햅틱 피드백 형태 및 웨어러블 시스템과의 통합 가능성을 분석한다. 아울러 로봇 원격제어, 증강현실 등 주요 응용 분야와 기술적 과제를 함께 다루며 SMA 패브릭 액츄에이터의 향후 발전 방향을 제시한다.


Keywords: 형상기억합금(Shape Memory Alloy), 착용형(Wearable), 패브릭 액츄에이터(Fabric Actuator), 햅틱(Haptics)

This Article

Correspondence to

  • Il-Kwon Oh
  • Mechanical Engineering Department, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology

  • E-mail: ikoh@kaist.ac.kr