Physical mechanism of the compressive response of F-actin networks:significance of crosslinker unbinding events

A model of crosslinker unbinding is implemented in a highly coarse- grained granular model of F-actin cytoskeleton. We employ this specific granular model to study the mechanisms of the compressive responses of F-actin networks. It is found that the compressive response of F-actin cytoskeleton has dependency on the strain rate. The evolution of deformation energy in the network indicates that crosslinker unbinding events can induce the remodelling of F-actin cytoskele- ton in response to external loadings. The internal stress in F-actin cytoskeleton can efficiently dissipate with the help of crosslinker unbinding, which could lead to the soontaneous relaxation of living cells.

Erratum to:Bio-inspired Filter Design Based on Vortex Control Mechanism of Parallel Groove Structure

Erratumto:Journal of Bionic Engineering(2023)20:338-348 https:/doi.0rg/10.1007/s42235-022-00247-4 In Table 1,the value of Mesh's Feature dimensions(mm)"0.42"should have read"0.04".The original article has been corrected.

Bio-inspired Filter Design Based on Vortex Control Mechanism of Parallel Groove Structure

Solid–liquid separation is widely used in daily life and practical engineering.Traditional industrial filters are prone to clogging,but this rarely occurs in filter-feeding organisms.Inspired by the filter feeding mechanism of balaenid whales and considering the local grooves in the fringes layer,a new bionic filter is produced by 3D printing technology through the bionic design of the parallel channels inside the mouth of balaenid whales.At the same time,a test platform composed of the bionic filter,peristaltic pump,fluid pulse rectifier and water tank is built to carry out the fluid flow pattern dyeing and particle filtration experiments.It is found that fluid separation occurs near the groove structure and local vortices are generated.The vortex control filtration mechanism makes the particles in the front grooves tend to accumulate on the left side,which has a certain anti-clogging effect.Moreover,the increase of flow velocity leads to the enhancement of vortices,which makes the accumulation effect on the left more obvious.This study initially practices the bionic application from biological model to engineering design,and the vortex control anti-clogging filtration mechanism proposed in the study has a wide range of application prospects and values.

Design,Characterization and Optimization of Multi-directional Bending Pneumatic Artificial Muscles

Bending Pneumatic Artificial Muscles(PAMs)are particularly attractive and extensively applied to the soft grasper,snake-like robot,etc.To extend the application of PAMs,we fabricate a Multi-directional Bending Pneumatic Artificial Muscle(MBPAM)that can bend in eight directions by changing the pressurized chambers.The maximum bending angle and output force are 151°and 0.643 N under the pressure of 100 kPa,respectively.Additionally,the Finite Element Model(FEM)is established to further investigate the performance.The experimental and numerical results demonstrate the nonlinear relationship between the pressure and the bending angle and output force.Moreover,the effects of parameters on the performance are studied with the validated FEM.The results reveal that the amplitude of waves and the thickness of the base layer can be optimized.Thus,multi-objective optimization is performed to improve the bending performance of the MBPAM.The optimization results indicate that the output force can be increased by 7.8%with the identical bending angle of the initial design,while the bending angle can be improved by 8.6%with the same output force.Finally,the grasp tests demonstrate the grip capability of the soft four-finger gripper and display the application prospect of the MBPAM in soft robots.