Roboticists at Yale University’s Laboratory have unveiled a development in soft robotics that allows robots to mimic phenomena like reptiles self-amputating limbs and ants forming bridges by fusing their bodies.
In a captivating demo video, a soft quadruped robot demonstrates its ability to escape from a trap. As a rock falls and pins one of its back legs, the robot uses a reversible joint heated by an electric current to detach the limb and break free. Remarkably, this limb can be reattached later, showcasing the robot’s resilience and adaptability.
In another demo, a single crawler robot faces the challenge of crossing a gap between two tables. Alone, it is unable to span the distance, but when three robots fuse using heated joints, they successfully bridge the gap as a single unit. This collaborative effort exemplifies the potential of these soft robots to work together dynamically.
While these capabilities aren’t entirely new to robotics, especially in modular robotics, the innovation lies in the flexible joints developed by Yale’s team. Traditional systems rely on rigid mechanical connections and magnets. But these new joints utilize a bicontinuous thermoplastic foam combined with a sticky polymer, enabling them to melt and separate, then reattach seamlessly.
The team detailed their research in a paper titled “Self-Amputating and Interfusing Machines,” published in Advanced Materials. They suggest that their techniques could pave the way for future robots capable of “radical shape-shifting via changes in mass through autotomy and interfusion.”