Harvard Microrobotics Laboratory
Bioinspired Robotics and Design Lab
Leader - Michael Tolley
https://youtu.be/-Ww9VtkZ8Pw
Rubbery robot walks through flames and snow
Published on Sep 5, 2014
Quote:
Full story: "Rubbery robot battles flames, snow and gets run over"
by Sandrine Ceurstemont
September 5, 2014
It may look like a softy, but this robot is a rugged survivor that can survive fire, ice and getting squashed by a car
https://youtu.be/uvCDYvHVK4Y
Untethered soft robot
Published on Sep 10, 2014
Quote:
Engineers at Harvard’s School for Engineering and Applied Sciences and the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering have developed the world’s first untethered soft robot – and demonstrated that the quadruped, which can literally stand up and walk away from its designers, can walk through snow, fire and even be run over by a car. The hope is that such robots might one day serve as a search and rescue tool following disasters.
Learn more at:
"Cutting the cord on soft robots
From Harvard engineers, a machine that can walk through flames"
by Peter Reuell
September 10, 2014
https://youtu.be/dkUtNPwm2wc
Soft Robot Uses Explosions to Jump
Published on Sep 16, 2014
Quote:
Harvard researchers have created a soft robot that uses an "explosive actuator" to propel itself. Learn more:
"This Soft Robot Uses Explosions to Jump"
by Evan Ackerman
September 16, 2014
This video is part of the paper "An Untethered Jumping Soft Robot," by Michael T. Tolley, Robert F. Shepherd, Michael Karpelson, Nicholas W. Bartlett, Kevin C. Galloway, Michael Wehner, Rui Nunes, George M. Whitesides, and Robert J. Wood, from Harvard University, presented at IROS 2014 in Chicago.
https://youtu.be/CsckBITSiyo
3D-printed robot jumps six times its height
Published on Jul 9, 2015
Quote:
Selecting which of its three pneumatic legs fire, this gizmo can point itself in the direction it wants to go
Full story: "We have lift off! 3D-printed robot jumps six times its height"
by Aviva Rutkin
July 9, 2015
https://youtu.be/RyFRfFPV9xI
A 3-D Printed Functionally Graded Soft Robot
Published on Jul 9, 2015
Article "Hopping towards a better soft robot"Quote:
SEAS researchers have built one of the first 3-D printed, soft robots that moves autonomously. The design offers a new solution to an engineering challenge that has plagued soft robotics for years: the integration of rigid and soft materials. This design combines the autonomy and speed of a rigid robot with the adaptability and resiliency of a soft robot and, because of 3-D printing, is relatively cheap and fast.
Harvard researchers develop 3-D printed autonomous soft robot
by Leah Burrows
July 9, 2015
https://youtu.be/dgHQ15zjkhY
3D printed soft jumping robot
Published on Jul 10, 2015
Quote:
Using a multi-material 3D printer for manufacturing allowed Wyss Institute researchers to fabricate the jumping robot in one uninterrupted job, seamlessly transitioning from rigid core components to a soft exterior in a single print session. It's first ever robot to be 3D printed with layers of material gradients, making it extremely durable and giving the jumping robot a long lifespan of use, and could lead to a new class of functionally-graded soft robots.
https://youtu.be/JhX5LxK4Gws
https://youtu.be/XnIeshlc4oM
3D-printed robot is hard at heart, soft on the outside
Published on Jul 9, 2015
Quote:
First of its kind robot is inspired by nature, capable of multiple jumps
Engineers at Harvard University and the University of California, San Diego, have created the first robot with a 3D-printed body that transitions from a rigid core to a soft exterior. The robot is capable of more than 30 untethered jumps and is powered by a mix of butane and oxygen. Researchers describe the robot’s design, manufacturing and testing in the July 10 issue of Science magazine.
https://youtu.be/LdBLkM0ZmEw
3D printed soft actuators for a legged robot capable of navigating unstructured terrain
Published on May 15, 2017
Quote:
Soft robotics is a rapidly developing field that is changing the way we perceive automated systems. Soft robots deform continuously along their bodies as opposed to at discrete joints like traditional rigid robots. In this work we demonstrated the use of multi-material 3D printing to fabricate a four-legged walking robot with bellowed soft legs. The robot is powered by pressurized air and is able to navigate a variety of terrain. This design is a step towards the development of a mobile soft system for applications including monitoring in hazardous environments and search-and-rescue operations.
https://youtu.be/clc5S6b2Kkg
Swimming soft robot with fluid electrode dielectric elastomer actuation
Published on May 18, 2017
Quote:
Submersible robots are finding ever-increasing uses in search and rescue, environmental monitoring, and defense applications. Artificial muscles made out of dielectric elastomer actuators (DEAs) provide an attractive choice for driving submersible robotics based on their high energy density, light weight, and efficiency. One challenge for most DEAs is that that they require conductive electrodes that are made out of materials that are challenging to pattern and/or add stiffness to the devices. Our solution is to use water as our conductive electrodes, which simplifies the design of our artificial muscles compared to alternative designs, allowing us to make lightweight, environmentally friendly, compliant electrodes for soft, underwater robots.