8. Soft robotics¶
Research¶
Soft robotics is an innovative field in robotics that focuses on the design and construction of robots using materials that mimic the flexibility and adaptability of natural organisms. Unlike traditional rigid robots, soft robots are made of materials such as silicones, gels, and elastomers, allowing them to perform delicate tasks, adapt to unstructured environments, and interact safely with humans and fragile objects.
The principles of soft robotics draw inspiration from biological systems, enabling robots to achieve movement, grip, and morphing capabilities that are challenging for rigid designs. These qualities make soft robotics ideal for applications in fields like medicine (e.g., prosthetics and minimally invasive surgery), agriculture (e.g., fruit harvesting), and exploration (e.g., navigating irregular terrains).
For Fab Academy, integrating soft robotics offers exciting opportunities to explore innovative materials and digital fabrication techniques, such as 3D printing, laser cutting, and molding, to create functional and customizable robotic solutions. Through hands-on experimentation, this project will aim to highlight how soft robotics can revolutionize automation and human-robot interactions.
Inspiration¶
- Ignant - Ignant
- performance_in_flux - performance_in_flux
- How Soft Robotics is Changing Clothing - TechnoLogich
Results¶
For this activity, the first thing I did was design a lotus flower in PowerPoint and I worked on that file in Illustrator.
Then I used the Cutstudio program, which is the one used by the vinyl cutting machine. I only kept the edges and made the "pair" of my design. I used orange thermoadesive vinyl.
It's been a long time since I cut vinyl, so to resolve my doubts about how to prepare the files and use the machine I used: * Vinil cut tutorial - Raul Babines - FabLab Puebla
Once the vinyl has been cut, it is necessary to assemble the pieces. The first step is to remove the edges "starting to peel"
When the pieces are assembled, the iron is used, in this case I used a temperature of 150C for 15 seconds.
References & Inspiration¶
"Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum."
- Two images side-by-side
Tools¶
Process and workflow¶
My hand drawn sketches are ... Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum.
Step¶
This model 1 was obtained by..
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum."
Step¶
The laser cut nesting 2 was created using..
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum.
Step¶
...
My hand drawn sketches are ...
This model 1 was obtained by..
The laser cut nesting 2 was created using..
footnote fabrication files
Fabrication files are a necessary element for evaluation. You can add the fabrication files at the bottom of the page and simply link them as a footnote. This was your work stays organised and files will be all together at the bottom of the page. Footnotes are created using [ ^ 1 ] (without spaces, and referenced as you see at the last chapter of this page) You can reference the fabrication files to multiple places on your page as you see for footnote nr. 2 also present in the Gallery.
3D Models¶
upload the 3d models of MakeHuman, Final 3d modelled body, 3D Scans, etc
This schematic [^4] was obtained by..
This tutorial [^5] was created using..
footnote fabrication files
Fabrication files are a necessary element for evaluation. You can add the fabrication files at the bottom of the page and simply link them as a footnote. This was your work stays organised and files will be all together at the bottom of the page. Footnotes are created using [ ^ 1 ] (without spaces, and referenced as you see at the last chapter of this page) You can reference the fabrication files to multiple places on your page as you see for footnote nr. 2 also present in the Gallery.
Code Example¶
Use the three backticks to separate code.
// the setup function runs once when you press reset or power the board
void setup() {
// initialize digital pin LED_BUILTIN as an output.
pinMode(LED_BUILTIN, OUTPUT);
}
// the loop function runs over and over again forever
void loop() {
digitalWrite(LED_BUILTIN, HIGH); // turn the LED on (HIGH is the voltage level)
delay(1000); // wait for a second
digitalWrite(LED_BUILTIN, LOW); // turn the LED off by making the voltage LOW
delay(1000); // wait for a second
}
Results¶
Video¶
From Vimeo¶
Sound Waves from George Gally (Radarboy) on Vimeo.