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Electrically-driven soft robots based on piezoelectric actuators may enable compact form factors and maneuverability in complex environments. In most prior work, piezoelectric actuators are used to control a single degree of freedom. In…
In this paper, we characterize the performance of and develop thermal management solutions for a DC motor-driven resonant actuator developed for flapping wing micro air vehicles. The actuator, a DC micro-gearmotor connected in parallel with…
Complexity, cost, and power requirements for the actuation of individual robots can play a large factor in limiting the size of robotic swarms. Here we present PCBot, a minimalist robot that can precisely move on an orbital shake table…
Swarm UAV autonomous flight for Embodied Long-Horizon (ELH) tasks is crucial for advancing the low-altitude economy. However, existing methods focus only on specific basic tasks due to dataset limitations, failing in real-world deployment…
This paper proposes a new type of actuator at millimeter scale, which is based on Simplified Electro-Permanent (SEP) magnets. The new actuator can achieve connection and smooth motion by controlling the polarity of SEP magnets. Analyses…
Cycling power measurement is an indispensable metric with profound implications for cyclists' performance and fitness levels. It empowers riders with real-time feedback, supports precise training regimen planning, mitigates injury risks,…
With the emergence of new flapping-wing micro aerial vehicle (FWMAV) designs, a need for extensive and advanced mission capabilities arises. FWMAVs try to adapt and emulate the flight features of birds and flying insects. While current…
Miniaturization of devices inculcates the need for small-sized actuators. Actuators in the size of a few centimeters are not uncommon but miniature devices need ones that are less than a few centimeters in dimension. Market for such…
This work presents the mechanical design and control of a novel small-size and lightweight Micro Aerial Vehicle (MAV) for aerial manipulation. To our knowledge, with a total take-off mass of only 2.0 kg, the proposed system is the most…
Functional magnetic composites capable of large deformation, load bearing, and multifunctional motion are essential for next-generation adaptive soft robots. Here, we present muscle-inspired magnetic actuators (MMA), additively manufactured…
The term embodied intelligence (EI) conveys the notion that body morphology, material properties, interaction with the environment, and control strategies can be purposefully integrated into the process of robotic design to generate…
Leak detection and water quality monitoring are requirements and challenging tasks in Water Distribution Systems (WDS). In-line robots are designed for this aim. In our previous work, we designed an in-pipe robot [1]. In this research, we…
Smart sensors are an emerging technology that allows combining the data acquisition with the elaboration directly on the Edge device, very close to the sensors. To push this concept to the extreme, technology companies are proposing a new…
In this paper, a compressed air-actuated soft robotic module was developed by incorporating a shape memory alloy (SMA) wire into its structure to achieve the desired bending angle with greater precision. First, a fiber-reinforced bending…
Despite significant advancements in the research of aquatic-aerial robots, existing configurations struggle to efficiently perform underwater, surface, and aerial movement simultaneously. In this paper, we propose a novel multimodal surfing…
Natural selection has tuned many flying and swimming animals across different species to share the same narrow design space for optimal high-efficient and energy-saving locomotion, e.g., their dimensionless Strouhal numbers St that relate…
Operation of nanomechanical devices in water environment has been challenging due to the strong viscous damping that greatly impedes the mechanical motion. Here we demonstrate an optomechanical micro-wheel resonator integrated in…
Recent progresses in ultra low power microelectronics propelled the development of several microsensors and particularly the self powered microsystems (SPMS). One of their limitations is their size and their autonomy due to short lifetime…
The use of aqueous electrolytes in energy storage devices is traditionally limited by the voltage stability window of water at 1.23 V. We present the use of a microemulsion based electrolyte which, although mostly water by mass, has a…
If international agreements regarding the need to significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions are to be met then there is a high probability that the shipping industry will have to dramatically reduce its greenhouse gas emissions. For…