Discretely assembled mechanical metamaterials

Abstract

Mechanical metamaterials offer exotic properties based on local control of cell geometry and their global configuration into structures and mechanisms. Historically, these have been made as continuous, monolithic structures with additive manufacturing, which affords high resolution and throughput, but is inherently limited by process and machine constraints. To address this issue, we present a construction system for mechanical metamaterials based on discrete assembly of a finite set of parts, which can be spatially composed for a range of properties such as rigidity, compliance, chirality, and auxetic behavior. This system achieves desired continuum properties through design of the parts such that global behavior is governed by local mechanisms. We describe the design methodology, production process, numerical modeling, and experimental characterization of metamaterial behaviors. This approach benefits from incremental assembly, which eliminates scale limitations, best-practice manufacturing for reliable, low-cost part production, and interchangeability through a consistent assembly process across part types.

Robustly printable freeform thermal metamaterials

“…2(f) . Note that our assembling scheme of the freeform thermal metamaterials are different from the traditional ways of assembling with bolts in mechanical metamaterials 48 . Besides, TFCs are freeform and different from each other, and as long as the size of TFCs is small enough, the arbitrary-shape thermal metadevices can be achieved.…”

Design and Characterization of Microscale Auxetic and Anisotropic Structures Fabricated by Multiphoton Lithography

“…Numerous approaches to mechanical chirality have been presented [ 39 ]. In this work, a novel geometry with no sharp corners was fabricated.…”

Recent Progress in Active Mechanical Metamaterials and Construction Principles

“…Bauer et al [215] proposed mechanical metamaterials with integral self-tensioning truss architectures, which were both ultralight and failure-resistance. Jenett et al [46] put forward the concept of discretely assembled mechanical metamaterials, which was like Lego building blocks (Figure 11c). Single metamaterial voxels with different mechanical properties (such as rigidity, compliance, auxeticity, and chirality) were assembled.…”

“…In the third part, we summarize several representative functions of mechanical metamaterials and their practical applications. They can be used in various fields such as miniaturized systems, [ 45 ] huge machinery, [ 46 ] and aerospace structures. [ 47 ] Compared with previous mechanical metamaterials, AMMs possess more design flexibilities, pre‐stress design realizability, mechanical properties programmability, multi‐stimulus fields coupling driving characteristics, and so on.…”

“…Copyright 2021, American Association for the Advancement of Science. c) Metamaterial voxels and the multi-unit modules [46]. Copyright 2020, American Association for the Advancement of Science.…”