Soft robotics for chemists.

By F. Ilievski, Aaron D. Mazzeo, Robert F. Shepherd, Xin Chen, George M. Whitesides. Angewandte Chemie, 2011

1,640 citations recorded by the source corpus.

The development of new types of soft robots, and especially of materials and methods for the fabrication of this class of robots, requires and offers rich new opportunities for interdisciplinary research involving organic chemistry, soft materials science, and robotics. This paper describes a methodology based on embedded pneumatic networks (PneuNets) that enables large-amplitude actuations in soft elastomers by pressurizing embedded channels. Examples include a structure that can change its curvature from convex to concave, and two devices that act as compliant grippers for handling fragile objects (e.g., an uncooked chicken egg, a live, anesthetized mouse) without damaging either. These systems suggest new areas of research for organic materials that are relevant to soft robotics, and to which chemists can make important contributions.

Subfields: Biomedical Engineering, Condensed Matter Physics

View Paper: https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/50a329872169907528c1cdd0d28f807f4fd5fbcd

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In Biomedical Engineering

In Condensed Matter Physics

Citations in the corpus

Bio-inspired soft robotics: Material selection, actuation, and design (2018, background): “Pneumatic artificial muscles (PAMs) [67,68], fluidic elastomer actuators [69], PneuNets [20,21,70], PneuFlex [71]) are driven by compressed air or pressurized fluids to inflate elastomeric materials at positive pressures relative to ambient air [6,72].”
Soft Manipulators and Grippers: A Review (2016, methodology): “Silicon elastomer robots using elastic actuation (Ilievski et al., 2011; Shepherd et al., 2011) and other methods such as explosion driven actuation (Shepherd et al.”
Programmable design of soft pneu-net actuators with oblique chambers can generate coupled bending and twisting motions (2018, background): “During the ast decade, extensive soft robots have been developed that can ealize grasping [5], manipulating [6], creeping [7], crawling [8], wimming [9], and jumping motions [10].”
Mechanically programmable bend radius for fiber-reinforced soft actuators (2013, background): “This has relevance towards improving the agility of soft actuators - the ability to create intricate movements - by enabling the user to adjust the placement and magnitude of a bending actuator’s radius of curvature [2].”
A compliant hand based on a novel pneumatic actuator (2013, methodology): “Starfish Gripper: The Starfish Gripper [5] is made entirely out of silicone.”
Multigait soft robot (2011, methodology): “Our pneumatic channel design is based on the pneu-net (PN) architecture described previously (18), because it is simple and compatible with soft lithography (24, 25).”
Mechanically Versatile Soft Machines through Laminar Jamming (2018, background): “[2] F Ilievski, AD Mazzeo, RF Shepherd, X Chen, and GM Whitesides.”
Design and Analysis of a Soft Pneumatic Actuator with Origami Shell Reinforcement (2016, positive): “This bending motion is suitable for a diverse set of applications such as gripping and manipulating fragile objects, 9,17 adaptable locomotion on unstructured terrains and autonomous navigation, 19,20 operating surgical tools, 21 and biomedical rehabilitation.”