Physics-aware differentiable design of magnetically actuated kirigami for shape morphing

Area of Science:

• Materials Science and Engineering
• Robotics and Soft Systems
• Computational Design and Optimization

Background:

• Shape morphing is essential for advanced multifunctional systems, with kirigami offering significant potential.
• Current kirigami designs often neglect the underlying physics, focusing mainly on kinematics.
• Active kirigami, soft materials with embedded magnetic particles, can respond to external stimuli like magnetic fields.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a differentiable inverse design framework for active kirigami that integrates physical principles.
• To enable the design of kirigami structures that achieve target shape-morphing through magnetic excitation.
• To bridge the gap between geometric design and physical behavior in stimuli-responsive materials.

Main Methods:

• Combined differentiable kinematics and energy models within a constrained optimization framework.
• Simultaneously designed kirigami cuts and magnetization orientations for kinematic and physical feasibility.
• Utilized magnetic excitation as the external stimulus for shape transformation.

Main Results:

• Achieved automatic generation of complex kirigami designs with high efficiency.
• Demonstrated remote control of morphing into intricate target shapes and multiple states.
• Validated the physical feasibility alongside kinematic requirements.

Conclusions:

• The proposed differentiable inverse design framework successfully integrates physics into kirigami design for active shape morphing.
• This approach enables efficient creation of complex, controllable, and physically feasible kirigami structures.
• The framework is adaptable for various active systems, advancing applications in flexible electronics and minimally invasive surgery.