Orienting the robotic fabric in two different directions causes a block of foam to either bend or compress, a principle that could be used to create robots that inch forward or slither. (Purdue University photo/Rebecca Kramer)
Researchers are developing a robotic fabric that moves and contracts and is embedded with sensors, an approach that could bring “active clothing” and a new class of “soft” robots.
Such an elastic technology could make possible robots that have sensory skin, stretchable robotic garments that people might wear for added strength and endurance, “g-suits” for pilots or astronauts to counteract the effects of acceleration, and lightweight, versatile robots to roam alien landscapes during space missions.
The robotic fabric is a cotton material containing sensors made of a flexible polymer and threadlike strands of a shape-memory alloy that return to a coiled shape when heated, causing the fabric to move.
“We have integrated both actuation and sensing, whereas most robotic fabrics currently in development feature only sensing or other electronic components that utilize conductive thread,” said Rebecca Kramer, an assistant professor of mechanical engineering at Purdue University. “We also use standard sewing techniques to introduce the thread-like actuators and sensors into the fabric, so they could conceivably be integrated into the existing textile manufacturing infrastructure.”
The robotic fabric can be wrapped around a block of foam or an inflated balloon. Orienting the fabric in one direction causes the robot to bend, producing locomotion like an inchworm’s. Orienting the fabric in a different direction causes it to compress – producing a peristaltic – or slithering locomotion.
Findings are detailed in a research paper presented during the International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems on Sept. 14–18 in Chicago. The paper was authored by doctoral students Michelle Yuen, Arun Cherian, Jennifer Case and Justin Seipel; and Kramer.
The work is related to research she is leading through a NASA Early Career Faculty award, announced in July, focusing on “active elastic skins for soft robotics.” The skin will contain a shape-memory alloy for muscle-like movement as well as numerous sensors to provide feedback and environmental information.
The goal is to make possible a class of soft robots where all the functional elements are embedded in a stretchable skin. This skin will include flexible electronics that are less sensitive to vibration than conventional hardware, making them rugged enough for space missions. Such a technology could allow space travelers to ship lightweight, easy-to-store sheets of robotic skin for assembly once they reach their destination.
Like the robotic fabric, the skin might be wrapped around a deformable object, creating robots capable of exploring alien terrains.
“We will be able to design robots on the fly,” Kramer said. “Anything can be a robot because all of the robotic technology is in the fabric or skin.”
The Latest on: Robotic fabric
via Google News
The Latest on: Robotic fabric
- Boring, robotic City? Try telling weeping Guardiola and his dramatic Premier League championson May 22, 2022 at 1:34 pm
A lack of drama has put some people off City in recent seasons. It's not an accusation that could be levelled at them this time ...
- Robots gain the sense of touchon May 16, 2022 at 6:36 am
Smart fabric sensor technology company, BeBop Sensors has introduced the BeBop Sensors RoboSkin line of skin-like coverings for tactile awareness for humanoid robots and prosthetics.
- First Roboskin for Human-Like Sensing of Objects by Robotson May 13, 2022 at 3:24 am
BeBop Sensors Inc announced the BeBop Sensors RoboSkin line of skin-like coverings for tactile awareness for humanoid robots and prosthetics. A true nervous system for robots at less than 1mm thick, ...
- This robot’s paintings showed at the Venice Biennale, but are they actually art?on May 12, 2022 at 1:00 am
Art never exists in isolation. It always needs someone to give it ‘art’ status. That goes for work created by AIs, too.
- Robotic Tufting Gun Fires Off CNC Textileson May 8, 2022 at 5:00 pm
Often used to make rugs, tufting is a process wherein a hollow needle is used to cram thread or yarn into fabric in some kind ... move more slowly. This robotic tufting system by [Owen Trueblood ...
- This Robotic Glove from MIT Gives You Powerful Banana Fingerson May 5, 2022 at 11:27 am
It’s also robotic gloves that make your fingers look like bananas. At least that’s the case with a funky-looking device unveiled by MIT’s Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL ...
- This Robotic Glove from MIT Gives You Powerful Banana Fingerson May 5, 2022 at 8:28 am
The material the machine uses is called conductive yarn, a sensing fabric that allows the robotic devices to “feel” what it touches. This means it can automatically respond to sensory ...
- pneumatic roboton May 2, 2022 at 5:00 pm
Like these “robotic skins” from Yale University ... In a simple implementation, the mechanical bits are sewn onto a piece of fabric and tied with zippers onto a piece of foam.
- Fabric Expands Retail Micro-Fulfillment Center Networkon April 28, 2022 at 5:22 am
Fabric’s fully automated robotic MFCs, which can be operated by as few as three workers, use artificial intelligence software to manage inventories. “We’re in the middle of an historic shift ...
via Bing News