Origami spring-inspired metamaterials and robots: An attempt at fully programmable robotics

Area of Science:

• Robotics and Material Science
• Origami-inspired engineering
• Metamaterials and Programmable Matter

Background:

• Three-dimensional printing enables programmable control over mechanical properties and faster fabrication.
• Origami principles offer innovative solutions in metamaterials and robotics.
• Integrating programmable metamaterials, mechanics, and fabrication is key for advanced robotic systems.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore a fully programmable robotic system by fusing programmable metamaterials, mechanics, and fabrication.
• To develop origami-based structures with unique shape-shifting and mechanical properties.
• To demonstrate tunable robotic morphing through hierarchical programming.

Main Methods:

• Proposed a roadmap for transforming origami models into programmable robotic systems.
• Introduced and analyzed an origami spring model, highlighting its shape-shifting geometry and metamaterial mechanisms.
• Addressed fabrication challenges for 3D-printable origami sheets focusing on printability, elasticity, and damage tolerance.

Main Results:

• Developed a soft manipulator utilizing the reversible compressibility of origami spring metamaterials.
• Created a peristaltic crawling robot with undulatory movements driven by origami spring metamaterials.
• Demonstrated a fully programmable robotic system encompassing programmable metamaterials, mechanics, fabrication, and behaviors.

Conclusions:

• Origami spring metamaterials exhibit rare switchable behavior from transverse compression to longitudinal stretchability.
• The proposed approach enables programmable robotic behaviors through hierarchical programming from modeling to actions.
• Robotic morphing can be effectively tuned by programming at multiple levels: design, fabrication, and actuation.