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8. Soft robotics

Research

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This week was very exciting for me because it's a completely new topic for me. As a textile designer, we often focus on the artistic and visual design aspects, but I believe that soft robots are an innovative tool that I can implement in different projects that combine textiles and design with a form of engineering that is easier to process but has the same principles and functions.

Main challenges:

  • Understanding how these systems work through simple figures.

  • Creating patterns that achieve a function and/or movement of the soft robot.

  • Experimenting with materials for creating molds that allow me to create soft robots.

Very ambitious goal:

  • Build a pneumatic, digitally electronic, and code-controlled

Soft Robots

As we saw in the reading about Soft Robots, I understand a soft robot to be a machine made primarily of malleable materials that are easy to manipulate and deform, such as gels, elastomers, and fluids, designed to interact with movement and adapt to any environment, and primarily to the environment for which it was designed in a flexible way. Unlike traditional rigid robots, soft robots can bend, deform, and change shape, making them safer for human interaction and the manipulation of delicate objects.

One of the things that most caught my attention in the reading is how the principles of nature are transferred to engineering solutions, especially how function is combined with structure, which challenges us to understand how fluid acts to create a movement system, as well as to find a way to transfer natural movements found in nature to a soft robot. Similarly, I believe this assignment is a great opportunity to explore the possibilities of transferring these soft robots to textiles.

*Material from Lecture class

REFERENCES AND INSPIRATION

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References & Inspiration

The references and inspirations I took as important elements were mainly soft robots with organic and undulating movements, which can even be wearable.

Montserrat Ciges

One of the most interesting projects was that of Montse Ciges and her proposal for a non-verbal form of expression through transformation, creating garments that react voluntarily with the outside world but also with the inside, inspired by the reactions of nature and its living beings.

Robotic Fibers

Soft robotics includes three main components: actuators, sensors, and control modules with power supplies. Actuators, sensors, and power sources can be designed in the form of fibers or fabrics, which facilitates their assembly and integration through interconnection. Common actions can be achieved through external stimuli such as electricity, light, heat, magnetic fields, solvents, and vapors, allowing for various 1D, 2D, or 3D movements. (You can read more about this interesting topic here. )

*** Rattlesnake *** What is interesting about the movement of snakes is their versatility and efficiency despite the absence of legs, which they achieve through a combination of a very flexible spine, powerful muscles, and ventral scales that adhere to the ground. They use various methods of locomotion, such as lateral undulation, rectilinear gliding, accordion movement, and lateral movement on smooth surfaces, as well as having the ability to glide between trees.

Tools

    - [Arduino UNO](http://class.textile-academy.org)
    - [Arduino IDE](http://class.textile-academy.org)
    - Smartcarve
    - Rhino 8
    -Roland Cut Studio
    -Ultimaker Cura

Process and workflow

My process began by understanding and studying the movement of snakes a little more to find the form that would allow me the most movement. I took inspiration from the shapes, geometries, structures, and characteristics of snakes, obtaining various patterns.

Design system model

This model 1 was obtained by..

Most of the stops have a 20° inclination because, according to the information I gathered, this is the angle that allows snakes to move."

Laser Cut

The laser cut nesting 2 was created using waxed paper

First attempt (Vynil)

The vinyl I used was very thin, which did not allow it to inflate properly. The temperature I used was 150°C for 15 seconds.

...

Second attempt (Vynil)

For the following attempts, I used a thicker textile vinyl with the same temperature and ironing time as before and experimented with different shapes, patterns, and textures based on the composition of the snakes.

* Rectangles

* Skin

* Waves

* Rattle

* Square (Greater movement)

The pattern that provides the most movement is the one that forms small diamonds in the center. It is quite curious that such simple shapes achieve greater movement.

Ecoflex

Once tested on vinyl, I decided to try a flexible material such as ecoflex to see how these systems behave on different materials. I decided to print a 3D mold with PLA filament and another mold reusing acrylic scraps.

3D Printing mold

Laser cutting mold

Pour and let dry!

Results

Unfortunately, my second inflatable didn't work because the base was too thin, but I just need to add more material to make it thicker.

Conclusions

What I learned from this experiment is precisely how the different patterns work. If they are too thin, only the thin lines will inflate and they will not move at all, so it is better to make them with larger shapes that connect and generate some movement. I would like to continue experimenting with this system and add other materials such as biomaterials to create something more functional.

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Fabrication files

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