Over the past several years, researchers have been developing soft analogues of traditionally rigid robotic components. In fluid-driven robotic systems, pumps control the pressure or flow of the liquid that powers the robot's movement. Most pumps available today for soft robotics are either too large and rigid to fit onboard,…
Inspired by the biomechanics of the manta ray, researchers have developed an energy-efficient soft robot that can swim more than four times faster than previous swimming soft robots. The robots are called 'butterfly bots,' because their swimming motion resembles the way a person's arms move when they are swimming the…