Premium
Soft Robotics: Light‐Driven Soft Robot Mimics Caterpillar Locomotion in Natural Scale (Advanced Optical Materials 11/2016)
Author(s) -
Rogóż Mikołaj,
Zeng Hao,
Xuan Chen,
Wiersma Diederik Sybolt,
Wasylczyk Piotr
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
advanced optical materials
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.89
H-Index - 91
ISSN - 2195-1071
DOI - 10.1002/adom.201670064
Subject(s) - climb , soft robotics , materials science , robot , elastomer , deformation (meteorology) , laser , soft materials , biomimetics , nanotechnology , artificial intelligence , mechanical engineering , optics , computer science , composite material , aerospace engineering , engineering , physics
With proper alignment of the molecules in liquid crystal elastomer (LCE) films, the material deformation can be engineered. On page 1689, P. Wasylczyk and co‐workers show that, upon illumination with laser light, a 15 mm long stripe of LCE soft material curls in a way that mimics the caterpillar body motion. The miniature soft robot can crawl on flat surfaces, climb slopes, squeeze through obstacles, and transport loads.