Electronics-Free Soft Walking Robot

Votes: 6
Views: 2648

Summary
We designed air-powered circuits to control the rhythmic motions of a walking robot without using any electronics. Our research was featured on the cover of Science Robotics and in various news articles including Tech Briefs magazine.

Tech Briefs Articles
https://www.techbriefs.com/component/content/article/tb/stories/blog/38648
https://www.techbriefs.com/component/content/article/tb/supplements/md/briefs/39230

Science Robotics Journal
https://robotics.sciencemag.org/content/6/51/eaay2627
https://robotics.sciencemag.org/content/6/51

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  • Awards

  • 2021 Manufacturing/Robotics/Automation Category Winner
  • 2021 Top 100 Entries

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  • ABOUT THE ENTRANT

  • Name:
    Dylan Drotman
  • Type of entry:
    individual
  • Profession:
    Scientist
  • Dylan is inspired by:
    I came up with these designs because I wanted to address a fundamental challenge in the field soft robotics. It is challenging to carry pneumatic control components (e.g. pumps, valves, batteries, and microcontrollers ) onboard mobile robots. Our solution replaces these heavy electronic components with soft materials. Right now, our research has been developed in a lab setting but it is exciting to think about how we can use electronics-free circuits for other robotic applications.
  • Software used for this entry:
    Solidworks
  • Patent status:
    pending