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1
Zhang, Ke, Yongqi Bi, and Ruiyu Zhang. "Design and Implementation of a Hybrid-Driven Soft Robot." Complexity 2024 (May 29, 2024): 1–17. http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2024/7624799.
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Currently, soft robots alone cannot obtain the same operating speed as rigid robots, while rigid robots are not safe enough for human-robot interaction. To address this problem, this paper describes a hybrid robot system that combines both rigid and flexible systems for unknown domain exploration. The system consists of a four-wheeled robot chassis and a cylindrical pneumatic soft actuator, and finally, a computer is used to coordinate and control both. The hardware of the robot system is designed, a bending motion model is proposed, and SOFA framework is used to carry out finite element simulation (FEM) to verify the reasonableness of the design; linear motion speeds of up to 0.5 m/s, higher than the existing soft robots investigated, were verified experimentally separately after carrying the new module, and steering ability was retained; and the robot carrying the navigation module is verified to have a certain map building and localization function through the construction of the simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM) experimental platform. The hybrid robot introduced in this paper can move quickly on flat terrain and can use its soft part to avoid wear and tear.
2
Yu, Wancheng. "Potential future bottlenecks for soft robots and their corresponding solutions." Journal of Physics: Conference Series 2634, no. 1 (November 1, 2023): 012027. http://dx.doi.org/10.1088/1742-6596/2634/1/012027.
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Abstract This paper briefly introduces the current situation of soft robots. Then, through the analysis of the current situation, it is concluded that there are two bottlenecks for soft robots, which are material bottleneck and performance bottleneck. In terms of materials, a usable soft robot often requires multiple tasks at the same time, but soft robots lack materials that can meet the needs of multiple tasks at present. In terms of performance, soft robots are different from traditional robots. Soft robots have unlimited degrees of freedom, which will lead to the CPU processing a large amount of data. Therefore, this paper proposes to introduce the concept of robot group into soft robots and solve the problems existing in soft robots by using the characteristics of low CPU and low individual strength requirements of robot groups.
3
Xu, Ruomeng, and Qingsong Xu. "Design of a Bio-Inspired Untethered Soft Octopodal Robot Driven by Magnetic Field." Biomimetics 8, no. 3 (June 22, 2023): 269. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/biomimetics8030269.
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Inspired by insects in nature, an increasing number of soft robots have been proposed to mimic their locomotion patterns. As a wireless actuation method, the magnetic actuation technique has been widely applied to drive soft magnetic robots for diverse applications. Although recent works on soft materials have stimulated the development of soft robots, it is challenging to achieve the efficient movement of soft robots for in vivo biomedical application. Inspired by centipede locomotion, a soft octopodal robot is designed in this paper. The robot is fabricated by mixing magnetic particles with silicone polymers, which is then magnetized by a specific magnetic field. The prototypes can be actuated by an external magnetic field (5–8 mT) produced by custom-made electromagnetic coils. Experimental results show that the soft robot can move at a high speed in the range of 0.536–1.604 mm/s on different surfaces, including paper, wood, and PMMA. This indicates that the soft robot can achieve comparable speeds to other robots, while being driven by a lower magnitude, resulting in energy savings. Furthermore, it achieves a high speed of 0.823 mm/s on the surface of a pig colon. The fine capabilities of the soft robot in terms of crossing uneven biological surfaces and carrying external loads are demonstrated. The results indicate that the reported soft robot exhibits promising applications in the biomedical field.
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Lee, Seonghyeon, Insun Her, Woojun Jung, and Yongha Hwang. "Snakeskin-Inspired 3D Printable Soft Robot Composed of Multi-Modular Vacuum-Powered Actuators." Actuators 12, no. 2 (January 31, 2023): 62. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/act12020062.
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A modular soft actuator with snakeskin-inspired scales that generates an anisotropic friction force is designed and evaluated in this study. The actuator makes it possible to fabricate soft robots that can move on various surfaces in the natural environment. For existing modulus soft robots, additional connectors and several independent pneumatic pumps are required. However, we designed precise connection and snake-scale structures integrated with a single pneumatic modular actuator unit. The precise structure was printed using a DLP 3D printer. The movement characteristics of the soft robot changed according to the angle of the scale structure, and the movement distance increased as the number of modular soft actuator units increased. Soft robots that can move in operating environments such as flat land, tubes, inclined paths, and water have been realized. Furthermore, soft robots with modularization strategies can easily add modular units. We demonstrate the ability to deliver objects 2.5 times heavier than the full weight of the soft robot by adding tong-like structure to the soft robot. The development of a soft robot inspired by snakeskin suggests an easy approach to soft robots that enables various tasks even in environments where existing robots have limited activity.
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Liu, Kerun, Weiwei Chen, Weimin Yang, Zhiwei Jiao, and Yuan Yu. "Review of the Research Progress in Soft Robots." Applied Sciences 13, no. 1 (December 22, 2022): 120. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/app13010120.
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The soft robot is a new type of robot with strong adaptability, good pliability, and high flexibility. Today, it is widely used in the fields of bioengineering, disaster rescue, industrial production, medical services, exploration, and surveying. In this paper, the typical driven methods, 3D printing technologies, applications, the existed problems, and the development prospects for soft robots are summarized comprehensively. Firstly, the driven methods and materials of the soft robot are introduced, including fluid driven, smart materials driven, chemical reaction driven, a twisted and coiled polymer actuator, and so on. Secondly, the basic principles and characteristics of mainstream 3D printing technologies for soft materials are introduced, including FDM, DIW, IP, SLA, SLS, and so on. Then, current applications of soft robots, such as bionic structures, gripping operations, and medical rehabilitation are described. Finally, the problems existing in the development of soft robots, such as the shortage of 3D printable soft materials, efficient and effective manufacturing of soft robots, shortage of smart soft materials, efficient use of energy, the realization of complex motion forms of soft robot, control action accuracy and actual kinematic modeling are summarized. Based on the above, some suggestions are put forward pertinently, and the future development and applications of the soft robot are prospected.
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Gu, Guoying, Jiang Zou, Ruike Zhao, Xuanhe Zhao, and Xiangyang Zhu. "Soft wall-climbing robots." Science Robotics 3, no. 25 (December 19, 2018): eaat2874. http://dx.doi.org/10.1126/scirobotics.aat2874.
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Existing robots capable of climbing walls mostly rely on rigid actuators such as electric motors, but soft wall-climbing robots based on muscle-like actuators have not yet been achieved. Here, we report a tethered soft robot capable of climbing walls made of wood, paper, and glass at 90° with a speed of up to 0.75 body length per second and multimodal locomotion, including climbing, crawling, and turning. This soft wall-climbing robot is enabled by (i) dielectric-elastomer artificial muscles that generate fast periodic deformation of the soft robotic body, (ii) electroadhesive feet that give spatiotemporally controlled adhesion of different parts of the robot on the wall, and (iii) a control strategy that synchronizes the body deformation and feet electroadhesion for stable climbing. We further demonstrate that our soft robot could carry a camera to take videos in a vertical tunnel, change its body height to navigate through a confined space, and follow a labyrinth-like planar trajectory. Our soft robot mimicked the vertical climbing capability and the agile adaptive motions exhibited by soft organisms.
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Yu, Zhang, Huang Peiyu, You Bo, Yu Zhibin, Li Dongjie, and Dong Guoqi. "Design and Motion Simulation of a Soft Robot for Crawling in Pipes." Applied Bionics and Biomechanics 2023 (February 5, 2023): 1–8. http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2023/5334604.
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In recent years, soft pipeline robot, as a new concept, is proposed to adapt to tunnel. The soft pipeline robots are made of soft materials such as rubber or silicone. These materials have good elasticity, which enhance the adaptability of the soft pipeline robot. Therefore, the soft pipeline robot has better performance on deformability than rigid robot. However, the structure of tunnel is complex and varied that brought challenges on design structure of soft pipeline robot. In this paper, we propose soft pipeline robot with simple structure and easy fabrication, which can be realized straight, turning motion in a variety of tunnels with different diameters. The soft pipeline robot composed of two types of structure, which are expansion part and deformation part. Front and rear deformation part for bending and position fixation, and middle expansion part for elongation, so the pipeline soft robot can be moved in various structures of tunnels. Moreover, the locomotion ability and adaptability in tunnel are verified by simulating on software. The structure of chamber proposed in this paper can guide the design method of soft pipeline robot.
8
Calisti, M., G. Picardi, and C. Laschi. "Fundamentals of soft robot locomotion." Journal of The Royal Society Interface 14, no. 130 (May 2017): 20170101. http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rsif.2017.0101.
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Soft robotics and its related technologies enable robot abilities in several robotics domains including, but not exclusively related to, manipulation, manufacturing, human–robot interaction and locomotion. Although field applications have emerged for soft manipulation and human–robot interaction, mobile soft robots appear to remain in the research stage, involving the somehow conflictual goals of having a deformable body and exerting forces on the environment to achieve locomotion. This paper aims to provide a reference guide for researchers approaching mobile soft robotics, to describe the underlying principles of soft robot locomotion with its pros and cons, and to envisage applications and further developments for mobile soft robotics.
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Zhao, Wenchuan, Yu Zhang, and Ning Wang. "Soft Robotics: Research, Challenges, and Prospects." Journal of Robotics and Mechatronics 33, no. 1 (February 20, 2021): 45–68. http://dx.doi.org/10.20965/jrm.2021.p0045.
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The soft robot is a kind of continuum robot, which is mainly made of soft elastic material or malleable material. It can be continuously deformed in a limited space, and can obtain energy in large bending or high curvature distortion. It has obvious advantages such as high security of human-computer interaction, strong adaptability of unstructured environment, high driving efficiency, low maintenance cost, etc. It has wide application prospects in the fields of industrial production, defense military, medical rehabilitation, exploration, and so on. From the perspective of the bionic mechanism, this paper introduces the soft robots corresponding to insect crawling, snake crawling, fish swimming, elephant trunk, arm, etc. According to different driving modes, the soft robots can be classified into pneumatic-hydraulic driven, intelligent material driven, chemical reaction driven, and so on. The mechanical modeling, control strategy, material, and manufacturing methods of soft robot are summarized, and the application fields of soft robot are introduced. This paper analyzes the main challenges faced by the research on the key technologies of soft robots, summarizes and analyzes them, and puts forward the prospects for the future research of soft robots. The development trend of the future is to develop the soft robot with the characteristics of micro-scale, rigid-flexible coupling, variable stiffness, multi-functional, high integration, and intelligence of driving sensor control.
10
Liu, Zhipeng, Linsen Xu, Xingcan Liang, and Jinfu Liu. "Stiffness-Tuneable Segment for Continuum Soft Robots with Vertebrae." Machines 10, no. 7 (July 18, 2022): 581. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/machines10070581.
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In addition to high compliance to unstructured environments, soft robots can be further improved to gain the advantages of rigid robots by increasing stiffness. Indeed, realizing the adjustable stiffness of soft continuum robots can provide safer interactions with objects and greatly expand their application range. To address the above situation, we propose a tubular stiffening segment based on layer jamming. It can temporarily increase the stiffness of the soft robot in a desired configuration. Furthermore, we also present a spine-inspired soft robot that can provide support in tubular segments to prevent buckling. Theoretical analysis was conducted to predict the stiffness variation of the robot at different vacuum levels. Finally, we integrated the spine-inspired soft robot and tubular stiffening segment to obtain the tuneable-stiffness soft continuum robot (TSCR). Experimental tests were performed to evaluate the robot’s shape control and stiffness tuning effectiveness. Experimental results showed that the bending stiffness of the initial TSCR increased by more than 15× at 0°, 30× at 90°, and 60× in compressive stiffness.
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Mészáros, Attila, and József Sárosi. "Soft Robotics." Analecta Technica Szegedinensia 16, no. 1 (August 5, 2022): 8–13. http://dx.doi.org/10.14232/analecta.2022.1.8-13.
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Widely used robot systems have a rigid base structure that limits the interaction with their environment. Due to the inflexible attachment points, conventional robotic structures can only manipulate objects with their special gripping system. It can be difficult for these systems to grasp objects with different shapes, handle complex surfaces or navigating in a heavily crowded environment. Many of the species observed in nature, like octopuses are able to perform complex sequences of movements using their soft-structured limbs, which are made up entirely of muscle and connective tissue. Researchers have been inspired to design and build robots based on these soft biological systems. Thanks to the soft structure and high degree of freedom, these soft robots can be used for tasks that would be extremely difficult to perform with traditional robot manipulators. This article discusses the capabilities and usability of soft robots, reviews the state of the art, and outlines the challenges in designing, modelling, manufacturing, and controlling.
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Ye, Changlong, Zhanpeng Liu, Suyang Yu, Zifu Fan, and Yinchao Wang. "Design and Motion Analysis of a Soft-Limb Robot Inspired by Bacterial Flagella." Biomimetics 8, no. 3 (June 26, 2023): 271. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/biomimetics8030271.
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Soft robots demonstrate an impressive ability to adapt to objects and environments. However, current soft mobile robots often use a single mode of movement. This gives soft robots good locomotion performance in specific environments but poor performance in others. In this paper, we propose a leg–wheel mechanism inspired by bacterial flagella and use it to design a leg–wheel robot. This mechanism employs a tendon-driven continuum structure to replicate the bacterial flagellar filaments, while servo and gear components mimic the action of bacterial flagellar motors. By utilizing twisting and swinging motions of the continuum structure, the robot achieves both wheeled and legged locomotion. The paper provides comprehensive descriptions and detailed kinematic analysis of the mechanism and the robot. To verify the feasibility of the robot, a prototype was implemented, and experiments were performed on legged mode, wheeled mode, and post-overturning motion. The experimental results demonstrate that the robot can achieve legged and wheeled motions. Moreover, it is also demonstrated that the robot still has mobility after overturning. This expands the applicability scenarios of the current soft mobile robot.
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Jyothi, Mrs N. Krishna. "Plucking Flowers using Soft Robot." International Journal for Research in Applied Science and Engineering Technology 11, no. 11 (November 30, 2023): 575–79. http://dx.doi.org/10.22214/ijraset.2023.56490.
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Abstract: Soft robotics is a subfield of robotics that concerns the design, control, and fabrication of robots composed of complaint materials, instead of rigid links. In contrast to the rigid-bodied robots built from metals, ceramics, and hard plastics, the compliance of soft robots can improve their safety when working in close contact with humans. The main objective of this project is to pluck flowers using a soft robot. The proposed system is designed to provide gentle manipulation of flowers in a horticultural setting. The soft robot is composed of flexible and deformable materials, such as silicone or elastomer, and is designed to mimic the motion and compliance of human fingers. The system is implemented and tested in a real-world scenario, and the results show that it can effectively pluck flowers without causing damage or injury to the plant. The proposed approach has potential applications in the floriculture industry, where the system can improve efficiency and reduce labour costs, while also minimizing damage to the flowers
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Lin, Hao, Yihui Chen, and Wei Tang. "Soft Electrohydraulic Bending Actuators for Untethered Underwater Robots." Actuators 13, no. 6 (June 8, 2024): 214. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/act13060214.
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Traditional underwater rigid robots have some shortcomings that limit their applications in the ocean. In contrast, because of their inherent flexibility, soft robots, which have gained popularity recently, offer greater adaptability, efficiency, and safety than rigid robots. Among them, the soft actuator is the core component to power the soft robot. Here, we propose a class of soft electrohydraulic bending actuators suitable for underwater robots, which realize the bending motion of the actuator by squeezing the working liquid with an electric field. The actuator consists of a silicone rubber film, polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) films, soft electrodes, silicone oils, an acrylic frame, and a soft flipper. When a square wave voltage is applied, the actuator can generate continuous flapping motions. By mimicking Haliclystus auricula, we designed an underwater robot based on six soft electrohydraulic bending actuators and constructed a mechanical model of the robot. Additionally, a high-voltage square wave circuit board was created to achieve the robot’s untethered motions and remote control using a smart phone via WiFi. The test results show that 1 Hz was the robot’s ideal driving frequency, and the maximum horizontal swimming speed of the robot was 7.3 mm/s.
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Liu, Chunshan, Erbao Dong, Min Xu, Gursel Alici, and Jie Yang. "Locomotion analysis and optimization of actinomorphic robots with soft arms actuated by shape memory alloy wires." International Journal of Advanced Robotic Systems 15, no. 4 (July 1, 2018): 172988141878794. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1729881418787943.
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This article presents the locomotion analysis and optimization of actinomorphic soft robots, which are composed of soft arms actuated by shape memory alloy wires. The soft arm that is a composite modular structure is actuated by a self-sensing feedback control strategy. A theoretical model was established to describe the deformation of the soft arm, combining the Euler–Bernoulli beam model of the soft arm with the constitutive model and the heat transfer model of the shape memory alloy wire. The kinematics of the actinomorphic soft robot was analyzed using the modified Denavit–Hartenberg method, and the motion equation of the actinomorphic soft robot was presented based on the quasi-static hypothesis. Results show that the actinomorphic soft robot moves with a zig-zag pattern. The locomotion of four actinomorphic soft robots with three to six arms was analyzed, and the gait parameters of each locomotion type were optimized. The optimization results indicate that the three-arm actinomorphic robot with certain gait parameters has the best performance and achieves a maximum stride length of 75 mm. A series of experiments were conducted to investigate the movement performance of the three-arm actinomorphic robot in various environments.
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Usevitch, Nathan S., Zachary M. Hammond, Mac Schwager, Allison M. Okamura, Elliot W. Hawkes, and Sean Follmer. "An untethered isoperimetric soft robot." Science Robotics 5, no. 40 (March 18, 2020): eaaz0492. http://dx.doi.org/10.1126/scirobotics.aaz0492.
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For robots to be useful for real-world applications, they must be safe around humans, be adaptable to their environment, and operate in an untethered manner. Soft robots could potentially meet these requirements; however, existing soft robotic architectures are limited by their ability to scale to human sizes and operate at these scales without a tether to transmit power or pressurized air from an external source. Here, we report an untethered, inflated robotic truss, composed of thin-walled inflatable tubes, capable of shape change by continuously relocating its joints, while its total edge length remains constant. Specifically, a set of identical roller modules each pinch the tube to create an effective joint that separates two edges, and modules can be connected to form complex structures. Driving a roller module along a tube changes the overall shape, lengthening one edge and shortening another, while the total edge length and hence fluid volume remain constant. This isoperimetric behavior allows the robot to operate without compressing air or requiring a tether. Our concept brings together advantages from three distinct types of robots—soft, collective, and truss-based—while overcoming certain limitations of each. Our robots are robust and safe, like soft robots, but not limited by a tether; are modular, like collective robots, but not limited by complex subunits; and are shape-changing, like truss robots, but not limited by rigid linear actuators. We demonstrate two-dimensional (2D) robots capable of shape change and a human-scale 3D robot capable of punctuated rolling locomotion and manipulation, all constructed with the same modular rollers and operating without a tether.
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Sui, Xin, Hegao Cai, Dongyang Bie, Yu Zhang, Jie Zhao, and Yanhe Zhu. "Automatic Generation of Locomotion Patterns for Soft Modular Reconfigurable Robots." Applied Sciences 10, no. 1 (December 31, 2019): 294. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/app10010294.
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In recent years, soft modular robots have become popular among researchers with the development of soft robotics. However, the absence of a visual 3D simulation platform for soft modular robots hold back the development of the field. The three-dimensional simulation platform plays an important role in the field of multi-body robots. It can shorten the design cycle, reduce costs, and verify the effectiveness of the optimization algorithm expediently. Equally importantly, evolutionary computation is a very effective method for designing the controller of multi-body robots and soft robots with hyper redundancy and large parametric design space. In this paper, a tradeoff between the structural complexity of the soft modular robot and computational power of the simulation software is made. A reconfigurable soft modular robot is designed, and the open-source simulation software VOXCAD is re-developed to simulate the actual soft robot. The evolutionary algorithm is also applied to search for the most efficient motion pattern for an established configuration in VOXCAD, and experiments are conducted to validate the results.
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Saunders, Frank, Ethan Golden, Robert D. White, and Jason Rife. "Experimental verification of soft-robot gaits evolved using a lumped dynamic model." Robotica 29, no. 6 (January 28, 2011): 823–30. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0263574711000014.
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SUMMARYWhen generating gaits for soft robots (those with no explicit joints), it is not evident that undulating control schemes are the most efficient. In considering alternative control schemes, however, the computational costs of evaluating continuum mechanic models of soft robots represent a significant bottleneck. We consider the use of lumped dynamic models for soft robotic systems. Such models have not been employed previously to design gaits for soft robotic systems, though they are widely used to simulate robots with compliant joints. A major question is whether these methods are accurate enough to be representations of soft robots to enable gait design and optimization. This paper addresses the potential “reality gap” between simulation and experiment for the particular case of a soft caterpillar-like robot. Experiments with a prototype soft crawler demonstrate that the lumped dynamic model can capture essential soft-robot mechanics well enough to enable gait optimization. Significantly, experiments verified that a prototype robot achieved high performance for control patterns optimized in simulation and dramatically reduced performance for gait parameters perturbed from their optimized values.
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Ribuan, Mohamed Najib, Shuichi Wakimoto, Koichi Suzumori, and Takefumi Kanda. "Omnidirectional Soft Robot Platform with Flexible Actuators for Medical Assistive Device." International Journal of Automation Technology 10, no. 4 (July 5, 2016): 494–502. http://dx.doi.org/10.20965/ijat.2016.p0494.
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This manuscript explains the employment of flexible actuators to act as a soft robot and transporting agent to assist medical X-ray examinations. Although soft robots from silicone material can be transparence and a human compliance used as medical assistive devices, soft robots have some problems: they tend to be sluggish, have long and imprecise gait trajectories, and need their control parameters to be adjusted for motion diversion. A soft robot with omnidirectional locomotion has been created, one that has a combination of pneumatic rubber legs that form a soft robot platform and an associated hardware setup. Tests have confirmed its omnidirectional locomotion ability; it has a maximum speed of 6.90 mm/s in forward locomotion and a maximum payload of 70 g. These features indicate that the robot can be used as a medical assistive device for fluoroscopy examinations.
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Sun, Hao, Bin Cheng, Ning Yang Wang, and Xiao Ping Chen. "A Preliminary Study of the HPN Robot." Applied Mechanics and Materials 575 (June 2014): 726–30. http://dx.doi.org/10.4028/www.scientific.net/amm.575.726.
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Soft robots are robots made of soft materials and actuators. Previously we proposed the HPN (Honeycomb PneuNets) Robot, where PneuNets were placed as actuators into honeycomb shaped elastomer. In this paper, we present some progress of this effort. A random search algorithm is applied to plan the obstacle-avoid movements of an HPN robot. We test it through several cases, and the results showed that the algorithm can work effectively. We introduce an HPN robot prototype, which is made of RTV-2 silicone rubber. Preliminary experiments showed that some good expansion rate and flexibility can be achieved. A piston and soft body simulation model of HPN robots is also presented, which can mimic the basic behaviors of the HPN robot.
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Garcia, Martin, Andrea-Contreras Esquen, Mark Sabbagh, Devin Grace, Ethan Schneider, Turaj Ashuri, Razvan Cristian Voicu, Ayse Tekes, and Amir Ali Amiri Moghadam. "Soft Robots: Computational Design, Fabrication, and Position Control of a Novel 3-DOF Soft Robot." Machines 12, no. 8 (August 7, 2024): 539. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/machines12080539.
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This paper presents the computational design, fabrication, and control of a novel 3-degrees-of-freedom (DOF) soft parallel robot. The design is inspired by a delta robot structure. It is engineered to overcome the limitations of traditional soft serial robot arms, which are typically low in structural stiffness and blocking force. Soft robotic systems are becoming increasingly popular due to their inherent compliance match to that of human body, making them an efficient solution for applications requiring direct contact with humans. The proposed soft robot consists of three soft closed-loop kinematic chains, each of which includes a soft actuator and a compliant four-bar arm. The complex nonlinear dynamics of the soft robot are numerically modeled, and the model is validated experimentally using a 6-DOF electromagnetic position sensor. This research contributes to the growing body of literature in the field of soft robotics, providing insights into the computational design, fabrication, and control of soft parallel robots for use in a variety of complex applications.
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Sui, Xin, Mingzhu Lai, Jian Qi, Zhiyuan Yang, Ning Zhao, Jie Zhao, Hegao Cai, and Yanhe Zhu. "A Fluid-Driven Loop-Type Modular Soft Robot with Integrated Locomotion and Manipulation Capability." Biomimetics 8, no. 5 (August 26, 2023): 390. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/biomimetics8050390.
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In nature, some animals, such as snakes and octopuses, use their limited body structure to conduct various complicated tasks not only for locomotion but also for hunting. Their body segments seem to possess the intelligence to adapt to environments and tasks. Inspired by nature, a modular soft robot with integrated locomotion and manipulation abilities is presented in this paper. A soft modular robot is assembled using several homogeneous cubic pneumatic soft actuator units made of silicone rubber. Both a mathematical model and backpropagation neural network are established to describe the nonlinear deformation of the soft actuator unit. The locomotion process of the chain-type soft robot is analyzed to provide a general rhythmic control principle for modular soft robots. A vision sensor is adopted to control the locomotion and manipulation processes of the modular soft robot in a closed loop. The experimental results indicate that the modular soft robot put forward in this paper has both locomotion and manipulation abilities.
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Nazeer, Muhammad Sunny, Cecilia Laschi, and Egidio Falotico. "Soft DAgger: Sample-Efficient Imitation Learning for Control of Soft Robots." Sensors 23, no. 19 (October 6, 2023): 8278. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/s23198278.
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This paper presents Soft DAgger, an efficient imitation learning-based approach for training control solutions for soft robots. To demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm, we implement it on a two-module soft robotic arm involved in the task of writing letters in 3D space. Soft DAgger uses a dynamic behavioral map of the soft robot, which maps the robot’s task space to its actuation space. The map acts as a teacher and is responsible for predicting the optimal actions for the soft robot based on its previous state action history, expert demonstrations, and current position. This algorithm achieves generalization ability without depending on costly exploration techniques or reinforcement learning-based synthetic agents. We propose two variants of the control algorithm and demonstrate that good generalization capabilities and improved task reproducibility can be achieved, along with a consistent decrease in the optimization time and samples. Overall, Soft DAgger provides a practical control solution to perform complex tasks in fewer samples with soft robots. To the best of our knowledge, our study is an initial exploration of imitation learning with online optimization for soft robot control.
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Wang, Xufeng, Wei Pu, Ruichen Zhang, and Fanan Wei. "Inchworm-like Soft Robot with Multi-Responsive Bilayer Films." Biomimetics 8, no. 5 (September 21, 2023): 443. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/biomimetics8050443.
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As an important branch of robotics, soft robots have the advantages of strong flexibility, a simple structure, and high safety. These characteristics enable soft robots to be widely used in various fields such as biomedicine, military reconnaissance, and micro space exploration. However, contemporary soft crawling robots still face problems such as the single drive mode and complex external equipment. In this study, we propose an innovative design of an inchworm-like soft crawling robot utilizing the synergistic interaction of electricity and moisture for its hybrid dual-drive locomotion. The legs of the soft robot are mainly made of GO-CNT/PE composite film, which can convert its own volume expansion into a corresponding bending motion after being stimulated by electricity or moisture. Unlike other drive methods, it requires less power and precision from external devices. The combination of the two driving methods greatly improves the environmental adaptability of the soft robot, and we developed visible light as the driving method on the basis of the dual drive. Finally, we also verified the robot’s excellent load capacity, climbing ability, and optical drive effect, which laid the foundation for the application of soft robots in the future.
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Su, Hang, Xu Hou, Xin Zhang, Wen Qi, Shuting Cai, Xiaoming Xiong, and Jing Guo. "Pneumatic Soft Robots: Challenges and Benefits." Actuators 11, no. 3 (March 16, 2022): 92. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/act11030092.
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In the field of robotics, soft robots have been showing great potential in the areas of medical care, education, service, rescue, exploration, detection, and wearable devices due to their inherently high flexibility, good compliance, excellent adaptability, and natural and safe interactivity. Pneumatic soft robots occupy an essential position among soft robots because of their features such as lightweight, high efficiency, non-pollution, and environmental adaptability. Thanks to its mentioned benefits, increasing research interests have been attracted to the development of novel types of pneumatic soft robots in the last decades. This article aims to investigate the solutions to develop and research the pneumatic soft robot. This paper reviews the status and the main progress of the recent research on pneumatic soft robots. Furthermore, a discussion about the challenges and benefits of the recent advancement of the pneumatic soft robot is provided.
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Liu, Hongwei, Yang Jiang, Manlu Liu, Xinbin Zhang, Jianwen Huo, and Haoxiang Su. "Path planning with obstacle avoidance for soft robots based on improved particle swarm optimization algorithm." Intelligence & Robotics 3, no. 4 (October 29, 2023): 565–80. http://dx.doi.org/10.20517/ir.2023.31.
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Soft-bodied robots have the advantages of high flexibility and multiple degrees of freedom and have promising applications in exploring complex unstructured environments. Kinematic coupling exists for the soft robot in a problematic space environment for motion planning between the soft robot arm segments. In solving the soft robot inverse kinematics, there are only solutions or even no solutions, and soft robot obstacle avoidance control is tough to exist, as other problems. In this paper, we use the segmental constant curvature assumption to derive the positive and negative kinematic relationships and design the tip self-growth algorithm to reduce the difficulty of solving the parameters in the inverse kinematics of the soft robot to avoid kinematic coupling. Finally, by combining the improved particle swarm algorithm to optimize the paths, the convergence speed and reconciliation accuracy of the algorithm are further accelerated. The simulation results prove that the method can successfully move the soft robot in complex space with high computational efficiency and high accuracy, which verifies the effectiveness of the research.
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Lee, Loong Yi, Ismaiil S. Hossen, Omar Ali Syadiqeen, Pei-Lee Teh, Chee Pin Tan, and Surya G. Nurzaman. "116 Knowing what Older Adults Want: A Soft Service Robot in Object Retrieval Tasks." Age and Ageing 48, Supplement_4 (December 2019): iv28—iv33. http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/ageing/afz164.116.
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Abstract Introduction An ageing society in this period of technological development may benefit from having service robots assist them in daily tasks. To that end, service robots that are equipped with soft grippers have the potential to handle the unstructured nature of objects such as eye-glasses and cutlery at homes. Drawing from Technology Acceptance Model, this paper aims to analyse technology adoption of a “soft service robot” for object retrieval tasks among older adults. Method A video demonstrating the operational functions of an in-house developed soft service robot was shown to 30 participants aged 60 and above. The video shows that the soft service robot can be remotely controlled through the internet to move around and pick up various household objects delicately. The soft service robot also enables users to interact with another individual through an integrated tablet. Thirty participants completed a survey measuring perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness, attitude towards the soft service robot and behavioural intention using seven-point Likert scales. Multiple regression analysis was performed to test the hypothesized model. Results Our study showed that the behavioral intention of older adults was jointly determined by the perceived usefulness (β=0.401; p-value< 0.01) and the attitude of the older adults towards the soft service robot (β=0.530; p-value<0.01). Interestingly, this study found a non-significant perceived ease of use-intention relationship (β=-0.167; p-value>0.05) in the model. Conclusion Our findings indicated that making a soft service robot easier-to-use has little or no impact on the formation of intentions. Essentially, a soft service robot that is perceived to be useful will be accepted by older adults. From a practical standpoint, it is of significant importance for service robotics designer and developers to build soft service robot with useful functions to enhance greater adoption of such technology among older adults.
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Yang, Yang, Honghui Zhu, Jia Liu, Haojian Lu, Yi Ren, and Michael Yu Wang. "A Proprioceptive Soft Robot Module Based on Supercoiled Polymer Artificial Muscle Strings." Polymers 14, no. 11 (June 1, 2022): 2265. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/polym14112265.
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In this paper, a multi-functional soft robot module that can be used to constitute a variety of soft robots is proposed. The body of the soft robot module made of rubber is in the shape of a long strip, with cylindrical chambers at both the top end and bottom end of the module for the function of actuators and sensors. The soft robot module is driven by supercoiled polymer artificial muscle (SCPAM) strings, which are made from conductive nylon sewing threads. Artificial muscle strings are embedded in the chambers of the module to control its deformation. In addition, SCPAM strings are also used for the robot module’s sensing based on the linear relationship between the string’s length and their resistance. The bending deformation of the robot is measured by the continuous change of the sensor’s resistance during the deformation of the module. Prototypes of an inchworm-like crawling robot and a soft robotic gripper are made, whose crawling ability and grasping ability are tested, respectively. We envision that the proposed proprioceptive soft robot module could potentially be used in other robotic applications, such as continuum robotic arm or underwater robot.
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Ou, Shikai. "Bio-inspired soft robot with varied localized stiffness." Applied and Computational Engineering 33, no. 1 (January 22, 2024): 131–38. http://dx.doi.org/10.54254/2755-2721/33/20230248.
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Soft robots are a type of intelligent robot with high adaptability, and the majority of them are made from soft materials, so they are flexible and adaptable. The variable stiffness function of soft robots is crucial, as it can enhance the robot's adaptability, safety, and dependability. By adjusting the stiffness, the soft robot is able to maintain a stable motion state in a complex environment, reduce environmental interference, and perform human-like actions with improved target control. The elephant trunk served as inspiration for the way proposed in this study for modifying the soft robot's arm's stiffness. By changing the insertion scheme of the interference plate in a flexible manner, the robot arm can have variable bending capability, allowing it to complete a variety of work instructions given by humans and to satisfy a variety of work requirements.
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Sayahkarajy, Mostafa, Hartmut Witte, and Ahmad Athif Mohd Faudzi. "Chorda Dorsalis System as a Paragon for Soft Medical Robots to Design Echocardiography Probes with a New SOM-Based Steering Control." Biomimetics 9, no. 4 (March 27, 2024): 199. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/biomimetics9040199.
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Continuum robots play the role of end effectors in various surgical robots and endoscopic devices. While soft continuum robots (SCRs) have proven advantages such as safety and compliance, more research and development are required to enhance their capability for specific medical scenarios. This research aims at designing a soft robot, considering the concepts of geometric and kinematic similarities. The chosen application is a semi-invasive medical application known as transesophageal echocardiography (TEE). The feasibility of fabrication of a soft endoscopic device derived from the Chorda dorsalis paragon was shown empirically by producing a three-segment pneumatic SCR. The main novelties include bioinspired design, modeling, and a navigation control strategy presented as a novel algorithm to maintain a kinematic similarity between the soft robot and the rigid counterpart. The kinematic model was derived based on the method of transformation matrices, and an algorithm based on a self-organizing map (SOM) network was developed and applied to realize kinematic similarity. The simulation results indicate that the control method forces the soft robot tip to follow the path of the rigid probe within the prescribed distance error (5 mm). The solution provides a soft robot that can surrogate and succeed the traditional rigid counterpart owing to size, workspace, and kinematics.
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Saan Cern, Yong, and Yeoh Sheng Ze. "The Design of a New 3D Print-in-place Soft Four-Legged Robots with Artificial Intelligence." Jurnal Kejuruteraan 35, no. 3 (May 30, 2023): 717–33. http://dx.doi.org/10.17576/jkukm-2023-35(3)-20.
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Soft and flexible robots are designed to change their flexibility over a wide range to perform tasks adequately in real-world applications. Current soft robots require cast moulding, high assembly effort and large actuators. Soft origami structures exhibit high levels of compliance. In this paper, we designed a new 3D print-in-place soft four-legged robot (3DSOLR). Our soft legged robot is an endurance application adapted from the soft origami zigzag gripper. This novel and innovative design are inspired by the rigid joint Theo Jansen legged robot with highly adaptive 3D print-in-place soft origami legs capable of fluid motion and even surviving drop tests. The robot mechanism consists of four soft origami flexible legs driven by two DC motors. The 3DSOLR is lightweight and semi-autonomous using two Hall effect sensors and a wireless Bluetooth module. Being 3D print-in-place using Thermoplastic polyurethane also increases its durability while having flexibility, simplicity and safety. The robot also has a gripper inspired by the mandible of male European stag beetle (Lucanus cervus). These features make this robot suitable to be used in social robotics and rescue robotics applications. The transmitter program is implemented in Bluetooth serial communication using MIT App Inventor 2 smartphone apps and a microcontroller Arduino ATMEL is used as the main controller and code in Arduino IDE. It has artificial intelligence (AI) capability with ESP32 CAM onboard which has an object classification accuracy of 95.5% using custom Edge Impulse neural network MobileNetV1 96 x 96. This AI capability enhanced the robot’s capability in object classification for grasping.
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Khan, Ameer Hamza, and Shuai Li. "Discrete-Time Impedance Control for Dynamic Response Regulation of Parallel Soft Robots." Biomimetics 9, no. 6 (May 28, 2024): 323. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/biomimetics9060323.
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Accurately controlling the dynamic response and suppression of undesirable dynamics such as overshoots and vibrations is a vital requirement for soft robots operating in industrial environments. Pneumatically actuated soft robots usually undergo large overshoots and significant vibrations when deactuated because of their highly flexible bodies. These large vibrations not only decrease the reliability and accuracy of the soft robot but also introduce undesirable characteristics in the system. For example, it increases the settling time and damages the body of the soft robot, compromising its structural integrity. The dynamic behavior of the soft robots on deactuation needs to be accurately controlled to increase their utility in real-world applications. The literature on pneumatic soft robots still does not sufficiently address the issue of suppressing undesirable vibrations. To address this issue, we propose the use of impedance control to regulate the dynamic response of pneumatic soft robots since the superiority of impedance control is already established for rigid robots. The soft robots are highly nonlinear systems; therefore, we formulated a nonlinear discrete sliding mode impedance controller to control the pneumatic soft robots. The formulation of the controller in discrete-time allows efficient implementation for a high-order system model without the need for state-observers. The simplification and efficiency of the proposed controller enable fast implementation of an embedded system. Unlike other works on pneumatic soft robots, the proposed controller does not require manual tuning of the controller parameters and automatically calculates the parameters based on the impedance value. To demonstrate the efficacy of the proposed controller, we used a 6-chambered parallel soft robot as an experimental platform. We presented the comparative results with an existing state-of-the-art controller in SMC control of pneumatic soft robots. The experiment results indicate that the proposed controller can effectively limit the amplitude of the undesirable vibrations.
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Li, Yunquan, Yujia Li, Tao Ren, Jiutian Xia, Hao Liu, Changchun Wu, Senyuan Lin, and Yonghua Chen. "An Untethered Soft Robotic Dog Standing and Fast Trotting with Jointless and Resilient Soft Legs." Biomimetics 8, no. 8 (December 8, 2023): 596. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/biomimetics8080596.
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Soft robots are compliant, impact resistant, and relatively safe in comparison to hard robots. However, the development of untethered soft robots is still a major challenge because soft legs cannot effectively support the power and control systems. Most untethered soft robots apply a crawling or walking gait, which limits their locomotion speed and mobility. This paper presents an untethered soft robot that can move with a bioinspired dynamic trotting gait. The robot is driven by inflatable soft legs designed on the basis of the pre-charged pneumatic (PCP) actuation principle. Experimental results demonstrate that the developed robot can trot stably with the fastest speed of 23 cm/s (0.97 body length per second) and can trot over different terrains (slope, step, rough terrain, and natural terrains). The robotic dog can hold up to a 5.5 kg load in the static state and can carry up to 1.5 kg in the trotting state. Without any rigid components inside the legs, the developed robotic dog exhibits resistance to large impacts, i.e., after withstanding a 73 kg adult (46 times its body mass), the robotic dog can stand up and continue its trotting gait. This innovative robotic system has great potential in equipment inspection, field exploration, and disaster rescue.
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Lin, Keng-Yu, Arturo Gamboa-Gonzalez, and Michael Wehner. "Soft Robotic Sensing, Proprioception via Cable and Microfluidic Transmission." Electronics 10, no. 24 (December 19, 2021): 3166. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/electronics10243166.
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Current challenges in soft robotics include sensing and state awareness. Modern soft robotic systems require many more sensors than traditional robots to estimate pose and contact forces. Existing soft sensors include resistive, conductive, optical, and capacitive sensing, with each sensor requiring electronic circuitry and connection to a dedicated line to a data acquisition system, creating a rapidly increasing burden as the number of sensors increases. We demonstrate a network of fiber-based displacement sensors to measure robot state (bend, twist, elongation) and two microfluidic pressure sensors to measure overall and local pressures. These passive sensors transmit information from a soft robot to a nearby display assembly, where a digital camera records displacement and pressure data. We present a configuration in which one camera tracks 11 sensors consisting of nine fiber-based displacement sensors and two microfluidic pressure sensors, eliminating the need for an array of electronic sensors throughout the robot. Finally, we present a Cephalopod-chromatophore-inspired color cell pressure sensor. While these techniques can be used in a variety of soft robot devices, we present fiber and fluid sensing on an elastomeric finger. These techniques are widely suitable for state estimation in the soft robotics field and will allow future progress toward robust, low-cost, real-time control of soft robots. This increased state awareness is necessary for robots to interact with humans, potentially the greatest benefit of the emerging soft robotics field.
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Ren, Ziyu, Rongjing Zhang, Ren Hao Soon, Zemin Liu, Wenqi Hu, Patrick R. Onck, and Metin Sitti. "Soft-bodied adaptive multimodal locomotion strategies in fluid-filled confined spaces." Science Advances 7, no. 27 (June 2021): eabh2022. http://dx.doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.abh2022.
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Soft-bodied locomotion in fluid-filled confined spaces is critical for future wireless medical robots operating inside vessels, tubes, channels, and cavities of the human body, which are filled with stagnant or flowing biological fluids. However, the active soft-bodied locomotion is challenging to achieve when the robot size is comparable with the cross-sectional dimension of these confined spaces. Here, we propose various control and performance enhancement strategies to let the sheet-shaped soft millirobots achieve multimodal locomotion, including rolling, undulatory crawling, undulatory swimming, and helical surface crawling depending on different fluid-filled confined environments. With these locomotion modes, the sheet-shaped soft robot can navigate through straight or bent gaps with varying sizes, tortuous channels, and tubes with a flowing fluid inside. Such soft robot design along with its control and performance enhancement strategies are promising to be applied in future wireless soft medical robots inside various fluid-filled tight regions of the human body.
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Wang, Yun, Gang Wang, Weihan Ge, Jinxi Duan, Zixin Chen, and Li Wen. "Perceived Safety Assessment of Interactive Motions in Human–Soft Robot Interaction." Biomimetics 9, no. 1 (January 21, 2024): 58. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/biomimetics9010058.
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Soft robots, especially soft robotic hands, possess prominent potential for applications in close proximity and direct contact interaction with humans due to their softness and compliant nature. The safety perception of users during interactions with soft robots plays a crucial role in influencing trust, adaptability, and overall interaction outcomes in human–robot interaction (HRI). Although soft robots have been claimed to be safe for over a decade, research addressing the perceived safety of soft robots still needs to be undertaken. The current safety guidelines for rigid robots in HRI are unsuitable for soft robots. In this paper, we highlight the distinctive safety issues associated with soft robots and propose a framework for evaluating the perceived safety in human–soft robot interaction (HSRI). User experiments were conducted, employing a combination of quantitative and qualitative methods, to assess the perceived safety of 15 interactive motions executed by a soft humanoid robotic hand. We analyzed the characteristics of safe interactive motions, the primary factors influencing user safety assessments, and the impact of motion semantic clarity, user technical acceptance, and risk tolerance level on safety perception. Based on the analyzed characteristics, we summarize vital insights to provide valuable guidelines for designing safe, interactive motions in HSRI. The current results may pave the way for developing future soft machines that can safely interact with humans and their surroundings.
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Wu, Peiliang, Yan Zhang, Yao Li, Bingyi Mao, Wenbai Chen, and Guowei Gao. "A Robot Pick and Place Skill Learning Method Based on Maximum Entropy and DDQN Algorithm." Journal of Physics: Conference Series 2203, no. 1 (February 1, 2022): 012063. http://dx.doi.org/10.1088/1742-6596/2203/1/012063.
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Abstract Pick and place (PAP) skill learning is a fundamental ability of intelligent robots, such as home service robot. Due to the NP-hard nature of the PAP problem, it takes a long time for an intelligent robot to learn the PAP skill based on current methods. In order to improve the learning efficiency of robot PAP skills, this paper proposes a Soft-DDQN-based PAP skill learning method. Firstly, the Soft-DDQN is proposed by introducing maximum entropy into robot DDQN framework, and the learning goal of Soft-DDQN is to maximize reward and information entropy. Secondly, PAP problem is modelled as a discrete form and Soft-DDQN is applied to solve the PAP problem. Finally, in order to verify the efficiency of Soft-DDQN-based PAP skill learning, comparisons have been given from two standard perspectives and shown that Soft-DDQN improves efficiency of PAP skill learning evidently.
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Lee, Han-Sol, Yong-Uk Jeon, In-Seong Lee, Jin-Yong Jeong, Manh Cuong Hoang, Ayoung Hong, Eunpyo Choi, Jong-Oh Park, and Chang-Sei Kim. "Wireless Walking Paper Robot Driven by Magnetic Polymer Actuator." Actuators 9, no. 4 (October 30, 2020): 109. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/act9040109.
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Untethered small-scale soft robots have been widely researched because they can be employed to perform wireless procedures via natural orifices in the human body, or other minimally invasive operations. Nevertheless, achieving untethered robotic motion remains challenging owing to the lack of an effective wireless actuation mechanism. To overcome this limitation, we propose a magnetically actuated walking soft robot based on paper and a chained magnetic-microparticle-embedded polymer actuator. The magnetic polymer actuator was prepared by combining Fe3O4 magnetic particles (MPs, diameter of ~50 nm) and silicon that are affected by a magnetic field; thereafter, the magnetic properties were quantified to achieve proper force and optimized according to the mass ratio, viscosity, and rotational speed of a spin coater. The fabricated polymer was utilized as a soft robot actuator that can be controlled using an external magnetic field, and paper was employed to construct the robot body with legs to achieve walking motion. To confirm the feasibility of the designed robot, the operating capability of the robot was analyzed through finite element simulation, and a walking experiment was conducted using electromagnetic actuation. The soft robot could be moved by varying the magnetic flux density and on–off state, and it demonstrated a maximum moving speed of 0.77 mm/s. Further studies on the proposed soft walking robot may advance the development of small-scale robots with diagnostic and therapeutic functionalities for application in biomedical fields.
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Bauer, Dominik, Cornelia Bauer, Jonathan P. King, Daniele Moro, Kai-Hung Chang, Stelian Coros, and Nancy Pollard. "Design and Control of Foam Hands for Dexterous Manipulation." International Journal of Humanoid Robotics 17, no. 01 (January 6, 2020): 1950033. http://dx.doi.org/10.1142/s0219843619500336.
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There has been great progress in soft robot design, manufacture, and control in recent years, and soft robots are a tool of choice for safe and robust handling of objects in conditions of uncertainty. Still, dexterous in-hand manipulation using soft robots remains a challenge. This paper introduces foam robot hands actuated by tendons sewn through a fabric glove. The flexibility of tendon actuation allows for high competence in utilizing deformation for robust in-hand manipulation. We discuss manufacturing, control, and design optimization for foam robots and demonstrate robust grasping and in-hand manipulation on a variety of different physical hand prototypes.
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Sasaki, Daisuke, Toshiro Noritsugu, and Masahiro Takaiwa. "Development of Pneumatic Soft Robot Hand for Human Friendly Robot." Journal of Robotics and Mechatronics 15, no. 2 (April 20, 2003): 164–71. http://dx.doi.org/10.20965/jrm.2003.p0164.
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When robots interact directly with humans, safety becomes a major consideration. The purpose of this study is to realize a safe humanlike robot hand for a human-friendly robot. The structure of the soft hand is described, its basic operation shown, and wipe motion for a human arm using this hand examined. Finally, a method of force communication task is proposed, which controls mutual communication based on the operating force between a robot and a human. This method is applied to their shaking hands.
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López-González, Alexandro, Juan C. Tejada, and Janet López-Romero. "Review and Proposal for a Classification System of Soft Robots Inspired by Animal Morphology." Biomimetics 8, no. 2 (May 4, 2023): 192. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/biomimetics8020192.
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The aim of this article is to propose a bio-inspired morphological classification for soft robots based on an extended review process. The morphology of living beings that inspire soft robotics was analyzed; we found coincidences between animal kingdom morphological structures and soft robot structures. A classification is proposed and depicted through experiments. Additionally, many soft robot platforms present in the literature are classified using it. This classification allows for order and coherence in the area of soft robotics and provides enough freedom to expand soft robotics research.
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Wang, Wei, Nam-Geuk Kim, Hugo Rodrigue, and Sung-Hoon Ahn. "Modular assembly of soft deployable structures and robots." Materials Horizons 4, no. 3 (2017): 367–76. http://dx.doi.org/10.1039/c6mh00550k.
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The first soft deployable robot, called DeployBot, capable of both deploying itself and of movement without additional motors is introduced. This robot can serve as the first step toward a new class of soft robots that is modular, self-deploying, and capable of locomotion “out of the box”.
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Zhang, Yu, Yubin Liu, Xin Sui, Tianjiao Zheng, Dongyang Bie, Yulin Wang, Jie Zhao, and Yanhe Zhu. "A Mechatronics-Embedded Pneumatic Soft Modular Robot Powered via Single Air Tube." Applied Sciences 9, no. 11 (May 31, 2019): 2260. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/app9112260.
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Soft modular robots have advantages, including infinite degrees of freedom and various configurations. Most soft robots are actuated by inflating air pressure into their chambers. However, each chamber is connected to a tube that provides the air supply, which incurs drag and intertwining problems that influence the robot’s motion. Moreover, the number of chambers directly affects the deformations and motion capabilities of the robot. Therefore, the crucial issue is the structure of a soft modular robot that can share an air source without reducing the number of chambers and can guarantee the deformations of the robot. In this paper, a novel mechatronics-embedded soft module was designed and manufactured, which has an air supply sharing function. Therefore, the soft modular robot can be powered via a single air tube. In addition, a wireless platform to control the air pressure of the module was built, and an experimental model was established to obtain the relationship between the deformation and pressure of the module. Four experiments were performed under different conditions. The experiments’ results indicate the bending capability of the module. Moreover, hooking object, twisting motion, and bionic gesture experiments demonstrate the validity of the module’s air pressure sharing function. Therefore, the air sharing supply approach proposed in this paper can be used as a reference to solve the tube drag problem of soft modular robots.
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Li, Pengchun, Yongchang Zhang, Guangyu Zhang, Dekai Zhou, and Longqiu Li. "A Bioinspired Soft Robot Combining the Growth Adaptability of Vine Plants with a Coordinated Control System." Research 2021 (October 22, 2021): 1–8. http://dx.doi.org/10.34133/2021/9843859.
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Tip-extending soft robots, taking flexible film or rubber as body material and fluid pressure as input power, exhibit excellent advantages in constrained and cluttered environments for detection and manipulation. However, existing soft continuum robots are of great challenges in achieving multiple, mutually independent, and on-demand active steering over a long distance without precise steering control. In this paper, we introduce a vine-like soft robot made up of a pressurized thin-walled vessel integrated with the high controllability of a control system with multiple degrees of freedom in three dimensions. Moreover, steering and kinematic models to relate the steering angle and robot length to the location of the robot tip are provided, and a dynamic finite element model for analyzing the motion of the spatial consecutive steering is established. We demonstrate the abilities of disinfection of the robot moving in a long and tortuous pipeline and detection in a multi-obstacle constrained environment. It is established that the robot exhibits great advantages in active consecutive steering over a long distance, high controllability in completing more complex path planning, and significant ability of carrying operational tools for ventilation pipeline disinfection and multi-obstacle detection. The bionic soft robot shows great promise for use in environment sensing, target detecting, and equipment servicing.
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Zhao, Wenchuan, Yu Zhang, Lijian Yang, Ning Wang, and Linghui Peng. "Research and Implementation of Pneumatic Amphibious Soft Bionic Robot." Machines 12, no. 6 (June 7, 2024): 393. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/machines12060393.
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To meet the requirements of amphibious exploration, ocean exploration, and military reconnaissance tasks, a pneumatic amphibious soft bionic robot was developed by taking advantage of the structural characteristics, motion forms, and propulsion mechanisms of the sea lion fore-flippers, inchworms, Carangidae tails, and dolphin tails. Using silicone rubber as the main material of the robot, combined with the driving mechanism of the pneumatic soft bionic actuator, and based on the theory of mechanism design, a systematic structural design of the pneumatic amphibious soft bionic robot was carried out from the aspects of flippers, tail, head–neck, and trunk. Then, a numerical simulation algorithm was used to analyze the main executing mechanisms and their coordinated motion performance of the soft bionic robot and to verify the rationality and feasibility of the robot structure design and motion forms. With the use of rapid prototyping technology to complete the construction of the robot prototype body, based on the motion amplitude, frequency, and phase of the bionic prototype, the main execution mechanisms of the robot were controlled through a pneumatic system to carry out experimental testing. The results show that the performance of the robot is consistent with the original design and numerical simulation predictions, and it can achieve certain maneuverability, flexibility, and environmental adaptability. The significance of this work is the development of a pneumatic soft bionic robot suitable for amphibious environments, which provides a new idea for the bionic design and application of pneumatic soft robots.
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Kim, Yongju, Jeong Eun Park, Jeong Jae Wie, Su Geun Yang, Don Haeng Lee, and Young-Joo Jin. "Effects of Helix Geometry on Magnetic Guiding of Helical Polymer Composites on a Gastric Cancer Model: A Feasibility Study." Materials 13, no. 4 (February 24, 2020): 1014. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/ma13041014.
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This study investigates the effects of soft-robot geometry on magnetic guiding to develop an efficient helical mediator on a three-dimensional (3D) gastric cancer model. Four different magnetically active helical soft robots are synthesized by the inclusion of 5-μm iron particles in polydimethylsiloxane matrices. The soft robots are named based on the diameter and length (D2-L15, D5-L20, D5-L25, and D5-L35) with samples having varied helical pitch and weight values. Then, the four samples are tested on a flat surface as well as a stomach model with various 3D wrinkles. We analyze the underlying physics of intermittent magnetomotility for the helix on a flat surface. In addition, we extract representative failure cases of magnetomotility on the stomach model. The D5-L25 sample was the most suitable among the four samples for a helical soft robot that can be moved to a target lesion by the magnetic-flux density of the stomach model. The effects of diameter, length, pitch, and weight of a helical soft robot on magnetomotility are discussed in order for the robot to reach the target lesion successfully via magnetomotility.
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Kovandžić, Marko, Vlastimir Nikolić, Miloš Simonović, Ivan Ćirić, and Abdulathim Al-Noori. "SOFT ROBOT POSITIONING USING ARTIFICIAL NEURAL NETWORK." Facta Universitatis, Series: Automatic Control and Robotics 18, no. 1 (September 24, 2019): 019. http://dx.doi.org/10.22190/fuacr1901019k.
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The experiment investigated the performance of an artificial neural network in solving the inverse kinematic problem of a soft robot. For this purpose, a simple soft robot was designed of building blocks, stringed on three rubber hoses, and an actuating system, to provide the hydraulic pressure. An axial extending of a hose, while the others are in the relaxed state, results in bending of the robot. The network was employed, as a black box, to approximate the behavior of the system. In accordance with the purpose, the input consisted of the desired spatial coordinates and the output of the step motor angular displacements. The network was trained and tested using records collected at 200 randomly chosen robot positions. The relative testing error of positioning, about 5%, confirmed a predictable robot behavior. The solution proposed is competitive in terms of simplicity, safety and price of realization. The experiment provided basics for the future research of the design of modular soft robots.
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Huang, Han, Yu Feng, Xiong Yang, Liu Yang, and Yajing Shen. "An Insect-Inspired Terrains-Adaptive Soft Millirobot with Multimodal Locomotion and Transportation Capability." Micromachines 13, no. 10 (September 22, 2022): 1578. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/mi13101578.
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Inspired by the efficient locomotion of insects in nature, researchers have been developing a diverse range of soft robots with simulated locomotion. These robots can perform various tasks, such as carrying medicines and collecting information, according to their movements. Compared to traditional rigid robots, flexible robots are more adaptable and terrain-immune and can even interact safely with people. Despite the development of biomimetic principles for soft robots, how their shapes, morphology, and actuation systems respond to the surrounding environments and stimuli still need to be improved. Here, we demonstrate an insect-scale soft robot with multi-locomotion modes made by Ecoflex and magnetic particles, which can be actuated by a magnetic field. Our robot can realize four distinct gaits: horizontal tumbling for distance, vertical tumbling for height, imitation of gastropod writhing, and inchworm-inspired crawling for cargo delivery. The soft compliant structure and four locomotion modes make the robot ideal for maneuvering in congested or complex spaces. In addition to linear motion (~20 mm/s) and turning (50°/s) on a flat terrain, the robot can also maneuver on various surface conditions (such as gaps, smooth slopes, sand, muddy terrain, and water). These merits, together with the robot’s high load-carrying capacity (5 times its weight), low cost, obstacle-crossing capability (as high as ~50% its length), and pressure resistance (70 kg), allow for a wide variety of applications.
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Ambaye, Getachew, Enkhsaikhan Boldsaikhan, and Krishna Krishnan. "Soft Robot Design, Manufacturing, and Operation Challenges: A Review." Journal of Manufacturing and Materials Processing 8, no. 2 (April 16, 2024): 79. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/jmmp8020079.
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Advancements in smart manufacturing have embraced the adoption of soft robots for improved productivity, flexibility, and automation as well as safety in smart factories. Hence, soft robotics is seeing a significant surge in popularity by garnering considerable attention from researchers and practitioners. Bionic soft robots, which are composed of compliant materials like silicones, offer compelling solutions to manipulating delicate objects, operating in unstructured environments, and facilitating safe human–robot interactions. However, despite their numerous advantages, there are some fundamental challenges to overcome, which particularly concern motion precision and stiffness compliance in performing physical tasks that involve external forces. In this regard, enhancing the operation performance of soft robots necessitates intricate, complex structural designs, compliant multifunctional materials, and proper manufacturing methods. The objective of this literature review is to chronicle a comprehensive overview of soft robot design, manufacturing, and operation challenges in conjunction with recent advancements and future research directions for addressing these technical challenges.
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伊藤, 一之. "ソフトロボット（Soft Robot）." Journal of Japan Society for Fuzzy Theory and Intelligent Informatics 31, no. 6 (December 15, 2019): 175. http://dx.doi.org/10.3156/jsoft.31.6_175_1.
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