Bioinspired footed soft robot with unidirectional all-terrain mobility

Xin Wang, Baisong Yang, Di Tan, Qian Li, Bin Song, Zhong Shuai Wu, Aránzazu del Campo, Michael Kappl, Zuankai Wang, Stanislav N. Gorb, Sheng Liu, Longjian Xue

Research output: Journal article publicationJournal articleAcademic researchpeer-review

96 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Soft robots consisting of stimuli-responsive soft materials are expected to achieve tasks otherwise impossible by robots with conventional rigid counterparts. In spite of good progress made over the past several years, robot mobility on various surfaces remains challenging. Here, we report a footed soft robot with good terrain adaptability and large load carrying capability by mimicking the anisotropic friction of gecko setae and the gait of caterpillars. The robot, termed as Geca-Robot, is composed of gecko-inspired triangular micropillars as the feet and alternating cuboids of polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) and graphene–PDMS as the muscle. Geca-Robot is remotely powered by light with wavelengths ranging from ultraviolet to infrared, and moves with a caterpillar-like gait. The gecko-inspired feet allows Geca-Robot to unidirectionally travel on terrains of varying roughness, slope, and dryness with a wide working temperature range, and to carry loads weighing approximately 50 times its own mass. Geca-Robot will inspire the creation of further soft robot designs for various natural terrains.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)42-49
Number of pages8
JournalMaterials Today
Volume35
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - May 2020
Externally publishedYes

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • General Materials Science
  • Condensed Matter Physics
  • Mechanics of Materials
  • Mechanical Engineering

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