Tensegrity deployment using infinitesimal mechanisms

Kinematic properties of tensegrity structures reveal that an ideal way of motion is by using their infinitesimal mechanisms. For example in motions along infinitesimal mechanisms there is no energy loss due to linearly kinetic tendon damping. Consequently, a deployment strategy which exploits these mechanisms and uses the structure's nonlinear equations of motion is developed. Desired paths that are tangent to the directions determined by infinitesimal mechanisms are constructed and robust nonlinear feedback control is used for accurate tracking of these paths. Examples demonstrate the feasibility of this approach and further analysis reveals connections between the power and energy dissipated via damping, infinitesimal mechanisms, speed of the motion, and deployment time.