Octopus muscle for soft robots

The nimble shape-shifting of the octopus – and its ability to squeeze through tight spaces with the quick contraction of a muscle – has inspired the development at Colorado State University of a twisted and coiled actuator that can generate
programmable motion in a soft robot.

Many robotics researchers have designed robots from soft, compliant materials for their safety, resistance to damage and better ability to exist in a human-driven world, but advances have been restricted by the inflexibility of their actuators for controlling movement.

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