Soft robot from Michigan State University uses traveling-wave motion to move in complex, narrow environments.
Benefits
- Reduced costs
- Flexible
- Dynamic
Applications
- Search and rescue
- Surveillance
UN Sustainable Development Goals Addressed
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Goal 9: Industry Innovation & Infrastructure
The Challenge
Robots often use extra limbs or wheels to move around. These appendages can be restrictive in certain environments due to their shape and size. This prevents many robots from operating in complex, constrained environments.
Innovation Details
The robot has a 3D-printed modular structure. It uses a pneumatic system with only four air channels regardless of the length of the robot. Due to its configuration, it is able to travel in tight, narrow pipelines of different diameters and geometries.
Biological Model
Snakes are limbless animals, so they must move over a variety of surfaces using only their flexible and slender bodies. Snakes typically swim, climb or crawl by bending their spine into serpentine coils or using their scales to push off objects.
