Showing papers in "Soft robotics in 2018"
TL;DR: This review article attempts to provide an insight into various controllers developed for continuum/soft robots as a guideline for future applications in the soft robotics field.
Abstract: With the rise of soft robotics technology and applications, there have been increasing interests in the development of controllers appropriate for their particular design. Being fundamentally different from traditional rigid robots, there is still not a unified framework for the design, analysis, and control of these high-dimensional robots. This review article attempts to provide an insight into various controllers developed for continuum/soft robots as a guideline for future applications in the soft robotics field. A comprehensive assessment of various control strategies and an insight into the future areas of research in this field are presented.
403 citations
TL;DR: A range of soft optical tactile sensors with various morphologies fabricated through dual-material 3D printing, inspired by the same biomimetic design principle, suitable for real-world applications in tactile perception, exploration, and manipulation.
Abstract: Tactile sensing is an essential component in human–robot interaction and object manipulation. Soft sensors allow for safe interaction and improved gripping performance. Here we present the...
349 citations
TL;DR: The design, fabrication, and characterization of a soft biomimetic robotic fish based on dielectric elastomer actuators (DEAs) that swims by body and/or caudal fin (BCF) propulsion are presented, suggesting the high potential of DEA-based underwater robots relying on BCF propulsion, and applicability of the design and fabrication methods.
Abstract: This article presents the design, fabrication, and characterization of a soft biomimetic robotic fish based on dielectric elastomer actuators (DEAs) that swims by body and/or caudal fin (B...
196 citations
TL;DR: This work presents bending and straightening fabric-based actuators that are simple to manufacture, lightweight, require low operating pressures, display a high torque-to-weight ratio, and occupy a low volume in their unpressurized state.
Abstract: Knit, woven, and nonwoven fabrics offer a diverse range of stretch and strain limiting mechanical properties that can be leveraged to produce tailored, whole-body deformation mechanics of soft robotic systems. This work presents new insights and methods for combining heterogeneous fabric material layers to create soft fabric-based actuators. This work demonstrates that a range of multi-degree-of-freedom motions can be generated by varying fabrics and their layered arrangements when a thin airtight bladder is inserted between them and inflated. Specifically, we present bending and straightening fabric-based actuators that are simple to manufacture, lightweight, require low operating pressures, display a high torque-to-weight ratio, and occupy a low volume in their unpressurized state. Their utility is demonstrated through their integration into a glove that actively assists hand opening and closing.
125 citations
TL;DR: A bibliometric analysis to evaluate the publications in the soft robotics field from 1990 to 2017 based on the Science Citation Index Expanded database shows that the United States takes the leading position, followed by China and Italy.
Abstract: Soft robotics is of growing interest in the robot community as well as in public media, and there is an increase in the quality and quantity of publications related to this topic. To formally elaborate this growth, we have used a bibliometric analysis to evaluate the publications in the field from 1990 to 2017 based on the Science Citation Index Expanded database. We present a detailed overview and discussion based on keywords, citation, h-index, year, journal, institution, country, author, and review articles. The results show that the United States takes the leading position in this research field, followed by China and Italy. Harvard University has the most publications, high average number of citations per publication and the highest h-index. IEEE Transactions on Robotics ranks first among the top 20 academic journals publishing articles related to this field, whereas Soft Robotics holds the top position in journals categorized with "ROBOTICS." Actuator, fabrication, control, material, sensing, simulation, bionics, stiffness, modeling, power, motion, and application are the hot topics of soft robotics. Smart materials, bionics, morphological computation, and embodiment control are expected to contribute to this field in the future. Application and commercialization appear to be the initial driving force and final goal for soft robots.
123 citations
TL;DR: Novel 3D printable soft vacuum actuators that are inspired by the sporangium of fern trees are proposed that offer many advantages such as high actuation speed, long lifetime, large payload to weight ratio, and significant output forces.
Abstract: Continued technological progress in robotic systems has led to more applications where robots and humans operate in close proximity and even physical contact in some cases. Soft robots, wh...
103 citations
TL;DR: The development and characterization of a suite of rotary and bending modules by varying fiber number and silicone hardness that holds the potential to be utilized at full ocean depths (>10,000 m) and is a step forward in the development of jointed underwater soft robotic arms.
Abstract: This article presents the development of modular soft robotic wrist joint mechanisms for delicate and precise manipulation in the harsh deep-sea environment. The wrist consists of a rotary module and bending module, which can be combined with other actuators as part of a complete manipulator system. These mechanisms are part of a suite of soft robotic actuators being developed for deep-sea manipulation via submersibles and remotely operated vehicles, and are designed to be powered hydraulically with seawater. The wrist joint mechanisms can also be activated with pneumatic pressure for terrestrial-based applications, such as automated assembly and robotic locomotion. Here we report the development and characterization of a suite of rotary and bending modules by varying fiber number and silicone hardness. Performance of the complete soft robotic wrist is demonstrated in normal atmospheric conditions using both pneumatic and hydraulic pressures for actuation and under high ambient hydrostatic pressu...
89 citations
TL;DR: It is argued that the diverse dynamics generated by actuating soft materials can be effectively used for machine learning purposes, demonstrated using a soft silicone arm through a technique of multiplexing, which enables the rich transient dynamics of the soft materials to be fully exploited as a computational resource.
Abstract: Soft materials are increasingly utilized for various purposes in many engineering applications. These materials have been shown to perform a number of functions that were previously difficult to implement using rigid materials. Here, we argue that the diverse dynamics generated by actuating soft materials can be effectively used for machine learning purposes. This is demonstrated using a soft silicone arm through a technique of multiplexing, which enables the rich transient dynamics of the soft materials to be fully exploited as a computational resource. The computational performance of the soft silicone arm is examined through two standard benchmark tasks. Results show that the soft arm compares well to or even outperforms conventional machine learning techniques under multiple conditions. We then demonstrate that this system can be used for the sensory time series prediction problem for the soft arm itself, which suggests its immediate applicability to a real-world machine learning problem. Our approach, on the one hand, represents a radical departure from traditional computational methods, whereas on the other hand, it fits nicely into a more general perspective of computation by way of exploiting the properties of physical materials in the real world.
89 citations
TL;DR: In this article, a pneumatic-actuated bio-inspired soft adhesion actuator is proposed for climbing on both ground and under water surfaces, which can operate on a wide range of foreign horizontal and vertical surfaces including dry, wet, slippery, smooth, and semi-smooth ones on ground and also under water.
Abstract: Climbing soft robots are of tremendous interest in both science and engineering due to their potential applications in intelligent surveillance, inspection, maintenance, and detection under environments away from the ground The challenge lies in the design of a fast, robust, switchable adhesion actuator to easily attach and detach the vertical surfaces Here, we propose a new design of pneumatic-actuated bioinspired soft adhesion actuator working both on ground and under water It is composed of extremely soft bilayer structures with an embedded spiral pneumatic channel resting on top of a base layer with a cavity Rather than the traditional way of directly pumping air out of the cavity for suction in hard polymer-based adhesion actuator, we inflate air into the top spiral channel to deform into a stable 3D dome shape for achieving negative pressure in the cavity The characterization of the maximum shear adhesion force of the proposed soft adhesion actuator shows strong and rapid reversible adhesion on multiple types of smooth and semi-smooth surfaces Based on the switchable adhesion actuator, we design and fabricate a novel load-carrying amphibious climbing soft robot (ACSR) by combining with a soft bending actuator We demonstrate that it can operate on a wide range of foreign horizontal and vertical surfaces including dry, wet, slippery, smooth, and semi-smooth ones on ground and also under water with certain load-carrying capability We show that the vertical climbing speed can reach about 286 mm/min (16 body length/min) while carrying over 200 g object (over 5 times the weight of ACSR itself) during climbing on ground and under water This research could largely push the boundaries of soft robot capabilities and multifunctionality in window cleaning and underwater inspection under harsh environment
86 citations
TL;DR: The aerial robot presented here for the first time was based on a quadrotor structure, which is capable of unique morphing performances based on an actuated elastic mechanism, which was able to pass through a narrow gap at a high forward speed by swiftly folding up the structure supporting its propellers.
Abstract: The aerial robot presented here for the first time was based on a quadrotor structure, which is capable of unique morphing performances based on an actuated elastic mechanism. Like birds, which are able to negotiate narrow apertures despite their relatively large wingspan, our Quad-Morphing robot was able to pass through a narrow gap at a high forward speed of 2.5 m.s− 1 by swiftly folding up the structure supporting its propellers. A control strategy was developed to deal with the loss of controllability on the roll axis resulting from the folding process, while keeping the robot stable until it has crossed the gap. In addition, a complete recovery procedure was also implemented to stabilize the robot after the unfolding process. A new metric was also used to quantify the gain in terms of the gap-crossing ability in comparison with that observed with classical quadrotors with rigid bodies. The performances of these morphing robots are presented, and experiments performed with a real flying robot passing through a small aperture by reducing its wingspan by 48% are described and discussed.
82 citations
TL;DR: A real-time numerical integration strategy based on finite element method with a numerical optimization based on Lagrange multipliers to obtain FKM and IKM to obtain soft manipulators that create motion by deformation, as opposed to the classical use of articulations.
Abstract: This article presents a modeling methodology and experimental validation for soft manipulators to obtain forward kinematic model (FKM) and inverse kinematic model (IKM) under quasi-static conditions (in the literature, these manipulators are usually classified as continuum robots. However, their main characteristic of interest in this article is that they create motion by deformation, as opposed to the classical use of articulations). It offers a way to obtain the kinematic characteristics of this type of soft robots that is suitable for offline path planning and position control. The modeling methodology presented relies on continuum mechanics, which does not provide analytic solutions in the general case. Our approach proposes a real-time numerical integration strategy based on finite element method with a numerical optimization based on Lagrange multipliers to obtain FKM and IKM. To reduce the dimension of the problem, at each step, a projection of the model to the constraint space (gathering actuators, sensors, and end-effector) is performed to obtain the smallest number possible of mathematical equations to be solved. This methodology is applied to obtain the kinematics of two different manipulators with complex structural geometry. An experimental comparison is also performed in one of the robots, between two other geometric approaches and the approach that is showcased in this article. A closed-loop controller based on a state estimator is proposed. The controller is experimentally validated and its robustness is evaluated using Lypunov stability method.
TL;DR: A pneumatically powered, reconfigurable omnidirectional soft robot based on caterpillar locomotion, composed of nine modules arranged as a three by three matrix, which gives the soft robot the ability to cope with the challenges of different environments and tasks.
Abstract: A pneumatically powered, reconfigurable omnidirectional soft robot based on caterpillar locomotion is described. The robot is composed of nine modules arranged as a three by three matrix and the length of this matrix is 154 mm. The robot propagates a traveling wave inspired by caterpillar locomotion, and it has all three degrees of freedom on a plane (X, Y, and rotation). The speed of the robot is about 18.5 m/h (two body lengths per minute) and it can rotate at a speed of 1.63°/s. The modules have neodymium-iron-boron (NdFeB) magnets embedded and can be easily replaced or combined into other configurations. Two different configurations are presented to demonstrate the possibilities of the modular structure: (1) by removing some modules, the omnidirectional robot can be reassembled into a form that can crawl in a pipe and (2) two omnidirectional robots can crawl close to each other and be assembled automatically into a bigger omnidirectional robot. Omnidirectional motion is important for soft robots to explore unstructured environments. The modular structure gives the soft robot the ability to cope with the challenges of different environments and tasks.
TL;DR: In this paper, an easy-to-assemble tense-grity-based soft robot capable of highly dynamic locomotive gaits and demonstrating structural and behavioral resilience in the face of physical damage is described.
Abstract: Living organisms intertwine soft (e.g., muscle) and hard (e.g., bones) materials, giving them an intrinsic flexibility and resiliency often lacking in conventional rigid robots. The emerging field of soft robotics seeks to harness these same properties to create resilient machines. The nature of soft materials, however, presents considerable challenges to aspects of design, construction, and control-and up until now, the vast majority of gaits for soft robots have been hand-designed through empirical trial-and-error. This article describes an easy-to-assemble tensegrity-based soft robot capable of highly dynamic locomotive gaits and demonstrating structural and behavioral resilience in the face of physical damage. Enabling this is the use of a machine learning algorithm able to discover effective gaits with a minimal number of physical trials. These results lend further credence to soft-robotic approaches that seek to harness the interaction of complex material dynamics to generate a wealth of dynamical behaviors.
TL;DR: The proposed compliant gripper is a low-cost design that can be used in grasping of size-varied vulnerable objects and shows that objects with the sizes between 42 and 141 mm can be grasped by the developed soft robotic gripper.
Abstract: This study presents the design of an underactuated, two-finger, motor-driven compliant gripper for grasping size-varied unknown objects. The gripper module consists of one main frame struc...
TL;DR: A 3D-printed photopolymer body with electrorheological fluid as a working fluid and gallium-indium-tin liquid metal alloy as electrodes was used in this article.
Abstract: Soft robots are designed to utilize their compliance and contortionistic abilities to both interact safely with their environment and move through it in ways a rigid robot cannot. To more completely achieve this, the robot should be made of as many soft components as possible. Here we present a completely soft hydraulic control valve consisting of a 3D-printed photopolymer body with electrorheological (ER) fluid as a working fluid and gallium–indium–tin liquid metal alloy as electrodes. This soft 3D-printed ER valve weighs less than 10 g and allows for onboard actuation control, furthering the goal of an entirely soft controllable robot. The soft ER valve pressure-holding capabilities were tested under unstrained conditions, cyclic valve activation, and the strained conditions of bending, twisting, stretching, and indentation. It was found that the max holding pressure of the valve when 5 kV was applied across the electrodes was 264 kPa, and that the holding pressure deviated less than 15% from t...
TL;DR: In this paper, a powerful evolutionary system is put in place to perform a broad investigation on the free-form evolution of simulated walking and swimming soft robots in different environments, and three sets of experiments are reported, tackling different aspects of the evolution of soft locomotion.
Abstract: Designing soft robots poses considerable challenges; automated design approaches may be particularly appealing in this field, as they promise to optimize complex multimaterial machines with very little or no human intervention. Evolutionary soft robotics is concerned with the application of optimization algorithms inspired by natural evolution to let soft robots (both their morphologies and controllers) spontaneously evolve within physically realistic simulated environments, figuring out how to satisfy a set of objectives defined by human designers. In this article, a powerful evolutionary system is put in place to perform a broad investigation on the free-form evolution of simulated walking and swimming soft robots in different environments. Three sets of experiments are reported, tackling different aspects of the evolution of soft locomotion. The first two explore the effects of different material properties on the evolution of terrestrial and aquatic soft locomotion: particularly, we show how different materials lead to the evolution of different morphologies, behaviors, and energy-performance trade-offs. It is found that within our simplified physics world, stiffer robots evolve more sophisticated and effective gaits and morphologies on land, while softer ones tend to perform better in water. The third set of experiments starts investigating the effect and potential benefits of major environmental transitions (land↔water) during evolution. Results provide interesting morphological exaptation phenomena and point out a potential asymmetry between land→water and water→land transitions: while the first type of transition appears to be detrimental, the second one seems to have some beneficial effects.
TL;DR: A novel design and manufacturing method using a laser-cutting machine that cuts/welds sheets of thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) from a 2D CAD drawing creates a new subclass of soft robots suitable for applications requiring a robot to be ultrathin, lightweight, and/or fit within small volumes.
Abstract: Pneumatically actuated soft robots address many challenges with interfacing with delicate objects, but these actuators/robots are still bulky and require many hours to fabricate, limiting ...
TL;DR: For the first time, a model from underlying physical principles is developed to explain and predict the sheet deformation, which enables it to swim at air-water interfaces and generate propulsive forces under water with an additional stiff frame.
Abstract: The actuation and control of miniature soft robots are challenging problems due to their limited onboard space and flexible bodies. Smart magnetic materials are promising candidates to address these challenges since they can be powered and guided remotely by magnetic field for functionalities, such as swimming, grasping, and pumping. In this study, we program an undulatory swimming gait into a small rectangular sheet that is made of a flexible magnetic homogeneous composite. The sheet bears a sinusoidal magnetization profile throughout its body and deforms into undulatory shapes in a rotating uniform magnetic field that aligns with its length. The traveling wave-like deformation of the sheet interacts with the surrounding liquid and propels the sheet in a bidirectional nonholonomic swimming gait. Previous studies on this sheet were not able to model the deformation accurately or characterize the swimming systematically due to a lack of understanding of the underlying physical principles involved. For the first time, we develop a model from underlying physical principles to explain and predict the sheet deformation, which enables it to swim at air-water interfaces and generate propulsive forces under water with an additional stiff frame. The swimming capability and maneuverability of the millimeter-scale sheet are demonstrated in experiments, and its swimming performances in various scenarios are characterized quantitatively. The soft swimming sheet can potentially be used for microrobotic tasks, such as delivering cargo or transporting individual cells in poorly accessible workspaces.
TL;DR: A quantitative modeling method, based on the Pythagorean hodograph (PH) curves, is proposed, to obtain a three-dimensional reconstruction of the shape of the continuum manipulator with variable curvature, allowing the calculation of its inverse kinematic model (IKM).
Abstract: Research on continuum manipulators is increasingly developing in the context of bionic robotics because of their many advantages over conventional rigid manipulators. Due to their soft str...
TL;DR: Evaluations of the fabric/rubber composite samples and devices indicate that such methods are effective for improving mechanical properties of soft robotic parts, resulting in parts that can have customized stiffness, strength, and vastly improved durability.
Abstract: Molded silicone rubbers are common in manufacturing of soft robotic parts, but they are often prone to tears, punctures, and tensile failures when strained. In this article, we present a fabric compositing method for improving the mechanical properties of soft robotic parts by creating a fabric/rubber composite that increases the strength and durability of the molded rubber. Comprehensive ASTM material tests evaluating the strength, tear resistance, and puncture resistance are conducted on multiple composites embedded with different fabrics, including polyester, nylon, silk, cotton, rayon, and several blended fabrics. Results show that strong fabrics increase the strength and durability of the composite, valuable in pneumatic soft robotic applications, while elastic fabrics maintain elasticity and enhance tear strength, suitable for robotic skins or soft strain sensors. Two case studies then validate the proposed benefits of the fabric compositing for soft robotic pressure vessel applications and soft strain sensor applications. Evaluations of the fabric/rubber composite samples and devices indicate that such methods are effective for improving mechanical properties of soft robotic parts, resulting in parts that can have customized stiffness, strength, and vastly improved durability.
TL;DR: An undulatory biomimetic robotic fish model with median fins manufactured using multimaterial three-dimensional printing and found that erecting the soft dorsal/anal fins significantly enhanced the linear acceleration rate, up to 32.5% over the folded fin state.
Abstract: Although linear accelerations are an important common component of the diversity of fish locomotor behaviors, acceleration is one of the least-understood aspects of propulsion. Analysis of acceleration behavior in fishes with both spiny and soft-rayed median fins demonstrates that fin area is actively modulated when fish accelerate. We implemented an undulatory biomimetic robotic fish model with median fins manufactured using multimaterial three-dimensional printing—a spiny-rayed dorsal fin, soft-rayed dorsal/anal fins, and a caudal fin—whose stiffnesses span three orders of magnitude. We used an array of fluidic elastomeric soft actuators to mimic the dorsal/anal inclinator and erector/depressor muscles of fish, which allowed the soft fins to be erected or folded within 0.3 s. We experimentally show that the biomimetic soft dorsal/anal fin can withstand external loading. We found that erecting the soft dorsal/anal fins significantly enhanced the linear acceleration rate, up to 32.5% over the fol...
TL;DR: The proposed prototyping method allows for an easy and quick fabrication, considering various design variables, and the controllable bending characteristics of the HCRPAM, which uses heterogeneous materials and has an asymmetrical structure to make it comfortable for a human to wear.
Abstract: There is a growing interest in soft actuators for human-friendly robotic applications. However, it is very challenging for conventional soft actuators to achieve both a large working dista...
TL;DR: In this paper, a 3D printed pinniped inspired multi-material whisker sensor is fabricated and characterized, which is composed of a polyurethane rod with a length-to-diameter ratio (L/d) of 20:1 with four graphene patterns perpendicular to each other.
Abstract: Bio-mimicking the underwater sensors has tremendous potential in soft robotics, under water exploration and human interfaces. Pinniped are semiaquatic carnivores that use their whiskers to sense food by tracking the vortices left by potential prey. To detect and track the vortices inside the water, a fully 3D printed pinniped inspired multi-material whisker sensor is fabricated and characterized. The fabricated whisker is composed of a polyurethane rod with a length-to-diameter ratio (L/d) of 20:1 with four graphene patterns (length × diameter: 60 × 0.3 mm) perpendicular to each other. The graphene patterns are further connected with output signal wires via copper tape. The displacement (∼5 mm) of the whisker rod in any direction (0–360°) causes the change in resistance \documentclass{aastex}\usepackage{amsbsy}\usepackage{amsfonts}\usepackage{amssymb}\usepackage{bm}\usepackage{mathrsfs}\usepackage{pifont}\usepackage{stmaryrd}\usepackage{textcomp}\usepackage{portland, xspace}\usepackage{amsmath, a...
TL;DR: This article proposes a tubular stiffening sheath as a replaceable cover for small-diameter continuum robots to temporarily increase the stiffness in a certain configuration and assess and compare performances of two different stiffening modalities: granular and layer jamming.
Abstract: Added to their high dexterity and ability to conform to complex shapes, continuum robots can be further improved to provide safer interaction with their environment. Indeed, controlling th...
TL;DR: The direct ink writing was used in this study, focusing on improving the stability of writing by exploring issues related to failure and ensuring the consistency of the microchannel by selecting appropriate process variables, including the syringe material.
Abstract: Given the need for stretchable sensors, many studies have been conducted on eutectic gallium-indium, which has superior properties as a conductive ink. However, it has remained a challenge to manufacture sensors in a consistent and reproducible manner because conventional mold-based fabrication still depends highly on manual techniques. To overcome this limitation, the direct ink writing was used in this study, focusing on improving the stability of writing by exploring issues related to failure and ensuring the consistency of the microchannel by selecting appropriate process variables, including the syringe material. As a result, multiple sensors produced under the same manufacturing conditions had similar behaviors. This fabrication technique improved the accuracy of manufacturing a microchannel, and its behavior was predicted successfully by a simple mathematical model, which was confirmed by nondestructive inspections of the microchannel. In developing a one-piece glove-type sensor without an assembly process, the efficiency of the fabrication technique was also emphasized.
TL;DR: A fully untethered autonomous quadrupedal soft robot and a soft gripper have been developed to demonstrate the superiority of the proposed approach over traditional pneumatic-driven soft robots.
Abstract: The past decade has witnessed tremendous progress in soft robotics. Unlike most pneumatic-based methods, we present a new approach to soft robot design based on precharged pneumatics (PCP). We propose a PCP soft bending actuator, which is actuated by precharged air pressure and retracted by inextensible tendons. By pulling or releasing the tendons, the air pressure in the soft actuator is modulated, and hence, its bending angle. The tendons serve in a way similar to pressure-regulating valves that are used in typical pneumatic systems. The linear motion of tendons is transduced into complex motion via the prepressurized bent soft actuator. Furthermore, since a PCP actuator does not need any gas supply, complicated pneumatic control systems used in traditional soft robotics are eliminated. This facilitates the development of compact untethered autonomous soft robots for various applications. Both theoretical modeling and experimental validation have been conducted on a sample PCP soft actuator design. A fully untethered autonomous quadrupedal soft robot and a soft gripper have been developed to demonstrate the superiority of the proposed approach over traditional pneumatic-driven soft robots.
TL;DR: Two reduced order models, a pure helical model, and a spatial Cosserat rod model are proposed to capture the deformed behavior of the gripper using the mechanics of fiber-reinforced actuators in the presence of self-weight to enable a systematic framework where the grippers parameters can be designed for a given range of object sizes to be handled.
Abstract: There are a number of instances in nature where long and slender objects are grasped by a continuum arm spirally twirling around the object, thereby increasing the area of contact and stab
TL;DR: A new inflatable soft actuator driven by two spiral chambers twined with fibers for the first time is proposed, which possesses a pure and high-efficient torsional motion with no bending and extension movements when works without load, which reduces the difficulties of theoretical analysis and control to some extent.
Abstract: Soft robot has become a hot topic recently due to its distinct advantages over traditional rigid robots such as high deformability and good impact resistance. However, the coupled deflecti...
TL;DR: The structural design problem is mathematically modeled under the framework of topology optimization, and solved by a new implementation tool that combines Abaqus/CAE and Matlab coding and represents an important step toward the goal of designing and fabricating soft robots automatically.
Abstract: In the past decade, a rich repertoire of soft robots, designed from biomimetic and intuitive approaches, has been developed to overcome challenges faced by their rigid-bodied counterparts....
TL;DR: Having a platform method to digitally configure and directly additively manufacture custom-motion, composite soft actuators has the potential to accelerate the development of more intricate designs and lead to potential impacts in a range of areas, including in-clinic personalization of soft assistive devices and patient-specific biomedical devices.
Abstract: This article presents a direct additive manufacturing method for composite material soft pneumatic actuators that are capable of performing a range of programmable motions Commonly, moldi