Toward a Novel Energy‐Dissipation Metamaterial with Tensegrity Architecture

Abstract

The interest in novel energy‐dissipation devices that offer advanced functionalities for optimal performance in state‐of‐the‐art engineering applications is growing. In this regard, a highly tunable and innovative dissipator is developed. This dissipator features movement amplification capabilities resulting from the radial replication of a unit‐cell with tensegrity architecture. The kinematic response of the dissipator is analyzed for several layouts, by varying the number of unit‐cells within the device, their internal geometry, and identifying the corresponding locking configurations. A fully operational 3D‐printed prototype is presented, demonstrating its excellent performance in terms of damping capabilities and feasibility. The experimental results are used to validate a numerical model of the flower unit. This model demonstrates the importance of pre‐strain on the overall stiffness and dissipative features of the proposed system. By utilizing these numerical models, it is shown that the proposed device can be used as a building block for more complex assemblies such as periodic metamaterials with tensegrity architecture.