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Three-dimensional (3D) printing has emerged as a powerful tool for material, food, and life science research and development, where the technology democratization necessitates the advancement of open-source platforms. Herein, we developed a…
There is a growing need for robots that can change their shape, size and mechanical properties to adapt to evolving tasks and environments. However, current shape-changing systems generally utilize bespoke, system-specific mechanisms that…
Shape-programmable soft materials that exhibit integrated multifunctional shape manipulations, including reprogrammable, untethered, fast, and reversible shape transformation and locking, are highly desirable for a plethora of applications,…
Soft machines are poised to deliver significant real-world impact, with soft robotics emerging as a key sub-discipline. This field integrates biological inspiration, materials science, and embodied intelligence to create bio-robotic…
Soft underwater robots typically explore bioinspired designs at the expense of power efficiency when compared to traditional underwater robots, which limits their practical use in real-world applications. We leverage a fluidic closed-loop…
Robotics and automation are key enablers to increase throughput in ongoing conservation efforts across various threatened ecosystems. Cataloguing, digitisation, husbandry, and similar activities require the ability to interact with…
The emerging new paradigm of technologies, the internet of things, entails a process of device miniaturization to combine several functional components, such as sensors, actuators, and powering elements, in a single individual on-chip…
Printing has drawn a lot of attention as a means of low per-unit cost and high throughput patterning of graphene inks for scaled-up thin-form factor device manufacturing. However, traditional printing processes require a flat surface and…
Iontronics combines ions as charge carriers with electronic-like operations, enabling unique information processing, chemical regulation, and enhanced bio-integrability. Standard simulation tools encounter difficulties in effectively…
Machines that mimic humans have inspired scientists for centuries. Bio-inspired soft robotic hands are a good example of such an endeavor, featuring intrinsic material compliance and continuous motion to deal with uncertainty and adapt to…
Elastomers are central to vision-based tactile sensors (VBTSs), where they transduce external contact into observable deformation. Different VBTS architectures, however, require distinct optical and mechanical properties, particularly…
Ionic Polymer Metal Composites (IPMCs) are one of the most preferred choices among biocompatible materials for industrial and biomedical applications. Despite their advantages, some of their drawbacks include non-linear and hysteretic…
Classical rigid-bodied robotic systems are presented with proven success in theoretical development and industrial applications, are recently challenged by the emergence of soft robotics due to a growing need in physical human-robot…
The present study presents a new micro electromagnetic actuator utilizing a PDMS membrane with a magnet. The actuator is integrated with micro coils to electromagnetically actuate the membrane and results in a large deflection. The micro…
The system design and algorithm development of mobile 3D printing robots need a realistic simulation. They require a mobile robot simulation platform to interoperate with a physics-based material simulation for handling interactions between…
Ion transport through nanopores permeates through many areas of science and technology, from cell behavior to sensing and separation to catalysis and batteries. Two-dimensional materials, such as graphene, molybdenum disulfide (MoS$_2$),…
This paper presents the initial development of a robotic additive manufacturing technology based on ultraviolet (UV)-curable thermoset polymers. This is designed to allow free-standing printing through partial UV curing and fiber…
Bilayer bending based soft actuators are widely utilized in soft robotics for locomotion and object gripping. However, studies on soft actuators based on bilayer doming remain largely unexplored despite the often-observed dome-like shapes…
Ionic polymer-metal composites consist in a thin film of electro-active polymers (Nafion R for example) sandwiched between two metallic electrodes. They can be used as sensors or actuators. The polymer is saturated with water, which causes…
Textile pneumatic actuators can provide useful wearable haptic feedback when embedded in gloves, armbands, and other smart garments. Here we investigate actuators fabricated from thermoplastic coated textiles. We measure the effects of…