Actuation of Corolla Pavilion: Cantilevered Double Rows Multi Chamber Soft Pneumatic Adaptive Structure

Abstract The Corolla Pavilion exemplifies a double-row, multi-chamber soft pneumatic adaptive structure (SPAS), with a distinct construction and span. This study aimed to further investigate the impacts of chamber pressure on movement and stiffness, as well as the actuation method employed to regulate these parameters. A petal was tested with two spans: short (around 27 cm) and long (around 112 cm) span. The short span experiment results show positive correlation with the hypothesized actuation mechanism, with vertical movement range of 23.5 mm. However, the long span setup only curved downward, with vertical position of the tip ranged from − 340.1 to − 10.1 mm. The correlation between pressure combination with the movement suggests that weight and stiffness of the petal substantially influence the movement. Although the employed finite element method cannot completely replicate the experiment, a simplified model indicates the interdependence between actuation and structural performance.