Journal ArticleDOI
GoQBot: a caterpillar-inspired soft-bodied rolling robot.
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TLDR
A novel rolling robot that closely mimics caterpillar rolling, and demonstrates how morphing can produce new modes of locomotion, and mechanical coupling of the actuators improves body coordination without sensory feedback.Abstract:
Rolling locomotion using an external force such as gravity has evolved many times. However, some caterpillars can curl into a wheel and generate their own rolling momentum as part of an escape repertoire. This change in body conformation occurs well within 100 ms and generates a linear velocity over 0.2 m s(-1), making it one of the fastest self-propelled wheeling behaviors in nature. Inspired by this behavior, we construct a soft-bodied robot to explore the dynamics and control issues of ballistic rolling. This robot, called GoQBot, closely mimics caterpillar rolling. Analyzing the whole body kinematics and 2D ground reaction forces at the robot ground anchor reveals about 1G of acceleration and more than 200 rpm of angular velocity. As a novel rolling robot, GoQBot demonstrates how morphing can produce new modes of locomotion. Furthermore, mechanical coupling of the actuators improves body coordination without sensory feedback. Such coupling is intrinsic to soft-bodied animals because there are no joints to isolate muscle-generated movements. Finally, GoQBot provides an estimate of the mechanical power for caterpillar rolling that is comparable to that of a locust jump. How caterpillar musculature produces such power in such a short time is yet to be discovered.read more
Citations
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Journal ArticleDOI
Design, fabrication and control of soft robots
Daniela Rus,Michael T. Tolley +1 more
TL;DR: This Review discusses recent developments in the emerging field of soft robotics, and explores the design and control of soft-bodied robots composed of compliant materials.
Journal ArticleDOI
Soft robotics: a bioinspired evolution in robotics.
TL;DR: Emerging soft-bodied robotic systems are reviewed to endow robots with new, bioinspired capabilities that permit adaptive, flexible interactions with unpredictable environments and to reduce the mechanical and algorithmic complexity involved in robot design.
Journal ArticleDOI
An integrated design and fabrication strategy for entirely soft, autonomous robots
Michael Wehner,Michael Wehner,Ryan L. Truby,Ryan L. Truby,Daniel J. Fitzgerald,Daniel J. Fitzgerald,Bobak Mosadegh,Bobak Mosadegh,George M. Whitesides,George M. Whitesides,Jennifer A. Lewis,Jennifer A. Lewis,Robert J. Wood,Robert J. Wood +13 more
TL;DR: An untethered operation of a robot composed solely of soft materials that autonomously regulates fluid flow and, hence, catalytic decomposition of an on-board monopropellant fuel supply is reported.
Journal ArticleDOI
Soft robotic glove for combined assistance and at-home rehabilitation
TL;DR: This paper presents a portable, assistive, soft robotic glove designed to augment hand rehabilitation for individuals with functional grasp pathologies that has the potential to increase user freedom and independence through its portable waist belt pack and open palm design.
Journal ArticleDOI
Pneumatic Networks for Soft Robotics that Actuate Rapidly
Bobak Mosadegh,Bobak Mosadegh,Panagiotis Polygerinos,Christoph Keplinger,Sophia W Wennstedt,Robert F. Shepherd,Unmukt Gupta,Jongmin Shim,Katia Bertoldi,Conor J. Walsh,Conor J. Walsh,George M. Whitesides,George M. Whitesides +12 more
TL;DR: In this article, a pneumatic actuator can bend from a linear to a quasicircular shape in 50 ms when pressurized at Δ P = 345 kPa.
References
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Journal ArticleDOI
Power and efficiency of insect flight muscle.
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