Demonstrator for soft autonomous machines – soft robotic low energy gripper systems with sensing capabilities based on livMatS Materials
This cooperation between the Plant Biomechanics Group and the Laboratory for Design of Microsystems aims to develop grippers as demonstrators for livMatS. The grippers will be inspired by the elastic movement of different soft motile plant and animal organs.
Actuation will be achieved by dielectric elastomer actuators (DEAs). These can either directly move parts of a gripper or generate pressure for pneumatic actuation. Grippers from the size of several centimeters down to a micrometer scale are envisaged. Generic manufacturing technologies will allow for the integration of different materials or technologies from other projects in livMatS, such as sensors or energy harvesters.
These grippers, either on their own or as part of more complex demonstrators, will act as showcases for possible future applications in medicine (minimal invasive surgery), daily life (robots as toys or housekeeping helpers), or production systems. They may also help to investigate and increase the public acceptance of robots with human-like gripping and sensing functionalities.
Contact
Prof. Dr. Peter Woias
Principal Investigators
Prof. Dr. Thomas Speck, Prof. Dr. Peter Woias
Postdoctoral Researcher
Dr. Falk Tauber
Associated Scientist
Dr. Frank Goldschmidtböing
Doctoral Researchers
Armin Jamali, Peter Kappel