Design Methodology for Soft Mechanisms, Machines, and Robots, 2nd Edition
A special issue of Machines (ISSN 2075-1702). This special issue belongs to the section "Machine Design and Theory".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 August 2026 | Viewed by 19
Special Issue Editor
Interests: mechanical design; dynamic system and control; MEMS; robotics
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Following the success of the previous Special Issue, ‘Design Methodology for Soft Mechanisms, Machines, and Robots’ (https://www.mdpi.com/journal/machines/special_issues/F8A5KA79EO), we are pleased to announce this second edition.
Soft robots or machines have gained significant attention in the field of robotics. This attention is driven by new applications in biomedicine and healthcare. Numerous prototypes of soft robots have been constructed based on biological systems, particularly creatures. However, the definition of a soft robot is controversial; specifically, soft actuators are often considered to be the same as direct actuators made of polymers (see the critique in the paper ‘Soft robotics: Definition and research issues’ (doi:10.1109/M2VIP.2017.8267170), where first the definitions of a soft power generator, soft controller, soft actuator, soft mechanism, and soft sensor are given, and subsequently the definitions of a full soft robot and a partially soft robot are given). Robots are specialized machines in that they include mechanisms and actuators. In this Special Issue, research contributions on design theory and methodology for soft mechanisms, machines, and robots are solicited on the topics related to the Keywords.
Prof. Dr. Wenjun (Chris) Zhang
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 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.
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. Machines 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 2400 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
- soft power generator
- soft actuator
- soft control
- soft mechanism
- compliant mechanism
- soft body
- soft sensor
- hydrogel machine
- hydrogel robot
- soft robots in healthcare systems
Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue
- Ease of navigation: Grouping papers by topic helps scholars navigate broad scope journals more efficiently.
- Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
- Expansion of research network: Special Issues facilitate connections among authors, fostering scientific collaborations.
- External promotion: Articles in Special Issues are often promoted through the journal's social media, increasing their visibility.
- Reprint: MDPI Books provides the opportunity to republish successful Special Issues in book format, both online and in print.
Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.
Related Special Issue
- Design Methodology for Soft Mechanisms, Machines, and Robots in Machines (5 articles)
