Mini Review: Comparison of Bio-Inspired Adhesive Feet of Climbing Robots on Smooth Vertical Surfaces

Developing climbing robots for smooth vertical surfaces (e.g., glass) is one of the most challenging problems in robotics. Here, the adequate functioning of an adhesive foot is an essential factor for successful locomotion performance. Among the various technologies (such as dry adhesion, wet adhesion, magnetic adhesion, and pneumatic adhesion), bio-inspired dry adhesion has been actively studied and successfully applied to climbing robots. Thus, this review focuses on the characteristics of two different types of foot microstructures, namely spatula-shaped and mushroom-shaped, capable of generating such adhesion. These are the most used types of foot microstructures in climbing robots for smooth vertical surfaces. Moreover, this review shows that the spatula-shaped feet are particularly suitable for massive and one-directional climbing robots, whereas mushroom-shaped feet are primarily suitable for light and all-directional climbing robots. Consequently, this study can guide roboticists in selecting the right adhesive foot to achieve the best climbing ability for future robot developments

Toward a gecko-inspired, climbing soft robot

In this paper, we present a gecko-inspired soft robot that is able to climb inclined, flat surfaces. By changing the design of the previous version, the energy consumption of the robot could be reduced, and at the same time, its ability to climb and its speed of movement could be increased. As a result, the new prototype consumes only about a third of the energy of the previous version and manages to climb slopes of up to 84◦. In the horizontal plane, its velocity could be increased from 2 to 6 cm/s. We also provide a detailed analysis of the robot's straight gait.Supported by the German Research Foundation (DFG) and Hamburg University of Technology (TUHH) in the funding programme Open Access Publishing

Soft pneumatic actuators: a review of design, fabrication, modeling, sensing, control and applications

Soft robotics is a rapidly evolving field where robots are fabricated using highly deformable materials and usually follow a bioinspired design. Their high dexterity and safety make them ideal for applications such as gripping, locomotion, and biomedical devices, where the environment is highly dynamic and sensitive to physical interaction. Pneumatic actuation remains the dominant technology in soft robotics due to its low cost and mass, fast response time, and easy implementation. Given the significant number of publications in soft robotics over recent years, newcomers and even established researchers may have difficulty assessing the state of the art. To address this issue, this article summarizes the development of soft pneumatic actuators and robots up until the date of publication. The scope of this article includes the design, modeling, fabrication, actuation, characterization, sensing, control, and applications of soft robotic devices. In addition to a historical overview, there is a special emphasis on recent advances such as novel designs, differential simulators, analytical and numerical modeling methods, topology optimization, data-driven modeling and control methods, hardware control boards, and nonlinear estimation and control techniques. Finally, the capabilities and limitations of soft pneumatic actuators and robots are discussed and directions for future research are identified