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Biomimetics
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Biomimetic Soft Robotics 2.0
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Biomimetic Soft Robotics 2.0

A special issue of Biomimetics (ISSN 2313-7673). This special issue belongs to the section "Locomotion and Bioinspired Robotics".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 November 2023) | Viewed by 5418

Special Issue Editor

Prof. Dr. Xiaofeng Zong

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Automation, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan 430074, China
Interests: soft bionic robotics; soft sensors; grippers and other end-effectors; soft actautor; modeling and control
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Soft actuators and robots made of intrinsically soft and/or extensible materials have attracted great attention due to their ability to adapt to complex environments and build safe, coexisting interaction with humans. They have found various applications in robotic manipulators, crawling and swimming robots, minimally invasive surgery devices, and other biomedical systems. After the success of the The aim of this 2.0 Special Issue is to collect contributions from different laboratories working on biomimetic soft robotic systems. By covering issues in basic mechanics, bionic engineering, control science, materials science, finite element simulation, and physical fabrication and experimentation, this Special Issue will provide an up-to-date overview of the status quo and perspectives in a rapidly growing field of basic and applied research. The present collection of papers, taking advantage of the journal’s open access format, is expected to provide a paradigm of the power of biomimetic approaches for discovering new important research avenues and for innovative solutions in biomimetic soft robotic systems.

We believe that this initiative will fill an important gap in biomimetic soft robotic systems and will stimulate the remarkable contributions of leading experts in the field.

Prof. Dr. Xiaofeng Zong
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Biomimetics is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2200 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • bionic engineering
  • mechanics and materials science
  • various applications in robotic field
  • simulation and experimentation
  • interaction with humans

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

16 pages, 4669 KiB  
Article
Soft Finger Rehabilitation Exoskeleton of Biomimetic Dragonfly Abdominal Ventral Muscles: Center Tendon Pneumatic Bellows Actuator
by Dehao Duanmu, Xiaodong Li, Wei Huang and Yong Hu
Biomimetics 2023, 8(8), 614; https://doi.org/10.3390/biomimetics8080614 - 15 Dec 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1678
Abstract
The development of soft robotics owes much to the field of biomimetics, where soft actuators predominantly mimic the movement found in nature. In contrast to their rigid counterparts, soft robots offer superior safety and human–machine interaction comfort, particularly in medical applications. However, when [...] Read more.
The development of soft robotics owes much to the field of biomimetics, where soft actuators predominantly mimic the movement found in nature. In contrast to their rigid counterparts, soft robots offer superior safety and human–machine interaction comfort, particularly in medical applications. However, when it comes to the hand rehabilitation exoskeletons, the soft devices have been limited by size and material constraints, unable to provide sufficient tensile strength for patients with high muscle tension. In this paper, we drew inspiration from the muscle structure found in the tail of dragonflies and designed a novel central tendon-based bellows actuator. The experimental results demonstrated that the central tendon-based bellows actuator significantly outperforms conventional pneumatic bellows actuators in terms of mechanical output. The tensile strength of the central tendon-based bellows actuator exceeded that of pneumatic actuators more than tenfold, while adding only 2 g to the wearable weight. This finding suggests that the central tendon-based bellows actuator is exceptionally well-suited for applications demanding substantial pulling force, such as in the field of exoskeleton robotics. With tensile strength exceeding that of pneumatic bellows actuators, this biomimetic design opens new avenues for safer and more effective human–machine interaction, revolutionizing various sectors from healthcare to industrial automation. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biomimetic Soft Robotics 2.0)
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12 pages, 2992 KiB  
Article
A Spider-Joint-like Bionic Actuator with an Approximately Triangular Prism Shape
by Xiaomao Jiang, Jun Yang, Le Zeng and Changyang Huang
Biomimetics 2023, 8(3), 299; https://doi.org/10.3390/biomimetics8030299 - 9 Jul 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1333
Abstract
The unique drive principle and strong manipulation ability of spider legs have led to several bionic robot designs. However, some parameters of bionic actuators still need to be improved, such as torque. Inspired by the hydraulic drive principle of spider legs, this paper [...] Read more.
The unique drive principle and strong manipulation ability of spider legs have led to several bionic robot designs. However, some parameters of bionic actuators still need to be improved, such as torque. Inspired by the hydraulic drive principle of spider legs, this paper describes the design of a bionic actuator characterized by the use of air pressure on each surface and its transmittance in the direction of movement, achieving a torque amplification effect. The produced torque is as high as 4.78 N m. In addition, its torque characteristics during folding motions are similar to those during unfolding motions, showing that the bionic actuator has stable bidirectional drive capability. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biomimetic Soft Robotics 2.0)
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13 pages, 1354 KiB  
Article
Design of a Bio-Inspired Untethered Soft Octopodal Robot Driven by Magnetic Field
by Ruomeng Xu and Qingsong Xu
Biomimetics 2023, 8(3), 269; https://doi.org/10.3390/biomimetics8030269 - 22 Jun 2023
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2033
Abstract
Inspired by insects in nature, an increasing number of soft robots have been proposed to mimic their locomotion patterns. As a wireless actuation method, the magnetic actuation technique has been widely applied to drive soft magnetic robots for diverse applications. Although recent works [...] Read more.
Inspired by insects in nature, an increasing number of soft robots have been proposed to mimic their locomotion patterns. As a wireless actuation method, the magnetic actuation technique has been widely applied to drive soft magnetic robots for diverse applications. Although recent works on soft materials have stimulated the development of soft robots, it is challenging to achieve the efficient movement of soft robots for in vivo biomedical application. Inspired by centipede locomotion, a soft octopodal robot is designed in this paper. The robot is fabricated by mixing magnetic particles with silicone polymers, which is then magnetized by a specific magnetic field. The prototypes can be actuated by an external magnetic field (5–8 mT) produced by custom-made electromagnetic coils. Experimental results show that the soft robot can move at a high speed in the range of 0.536–1.604 mm/s on different surfaces, including paper, wood, and PMMA. This indicates that the soft robot can achieve comparable speeds to other robots, while being driven by a lower magnitude, resulting in energy savings. Furthermore, it achieves a high speed of 0.823 mm/s on the surface of a pig colon. The fine capabilities of the soft robot in terms of crossing uneven biological surfaces and carrying external loads are demonstrated. The results indicate that the reported soft robot exhibits promising applications in the biomedical field. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biomimetic Soft Robotics 2.0)
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