A Stick-Slip Interactions Model of Soft-Solid Frictional Contacts

Abstract

Modeling of the soft-solid frictional interactions plays an important role in many robotic and mechatronic systems design. We present a new model that characterizes the two-dimensional (2D) soft-solid contact interactions. The new computational approach integrates the LuGre dynamic friction model with the beam network structure of the soft-solid contact. The LuGre dynamic friction model uses the bristle deformation to capture the friction characteristics and dynamics, while the beam network structure represents the elastic contact interactions. We also present a model simplification to facilitate analysis of model properties. The model prediction and validation results are demonstrated with the experiments. The experimental results confirm the effectiveness of the modeling development. We further use the model to compute the influence of the normal load and sliding velocity on the stick-slip interaction patterns and properties. These results explain and provide analytical foundation for the reported experiments in the literature.