Innovations in soft robotics offer a lot of promise for the future. As opposed to their rigid counterparts, soft robots are ideal for use in applications in medicine, wearable electronics, search and rescue, and more. But while many advances have been made in this area, especially with respect to artificial tissues, soft actuators, and flexible skeletal structures, there is one area in particular that is noticeably lagging behind — the electronics. The chips and sensors that are crucial to the operation of these robots are almost invariably made from rigid materials.
This is one of the biggest reasons why soft robots have not yet emerged from workbenches in academia and other research institutions. But this state of affairs could change in the near future, thanks to the work of engineers at Yale University. They have developed a method to incorporate traditional electronic components into super-stretchy materials that make them well-suited for use in soft robotics.
Try that with your Arduino! (📷: Yale Engineering)
Since the Arduino platform is so pervasive in soft robotics research, the team decided to build a clone of several Arduino boards, only with a whole lot more flexibility than an official board. They focused on the Arduino Pro Mini and the Arduino Lilypad, and they also cloned the circuits of some other popular hobbyist tools like the Sparkfun Sound Detector and the Sparkfun RGB and the Gesture Sensor.
The key to this work was the use of a gallium-based liquid metal. After this liquid metal is exposed to oxygen, it takes the form of a paste. This paste was laser-cut into the shape of the desired circuit to make connections between traditional, rigid electronic components. These finished designs were then encapsulated inside of a stretchy material. By using these methods, the traces between the components could be flexed, bent, and stretched in very significant ways without breaking the electrical contacts.
These stretchy Arduinos were incorporated directly into the design of a number of soft robots. One of these was a walking quadrupedal robot with an adjustable gait. The team also demonstrated some wearable devices that are designed for use in assistive technologies.
Unlike previous efforts, these robots do not require external circuit boards to power them. Furthermore, they do not need to hide their electronics in an area that does a minimal amount of flexing. The electronics can be built into any part of the robot without impacting their performance.
The team hopes that their techniques will be used to deploy electronics on many different types of soft robots in the future.
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