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Updated: May 9, 2026

The Modular Design and Production of an Intelligent Robot Based on a Closed-Loop Control Strategy
Published on: October 14, 2017
Integrated Actuation and Sensing: Toward Intelligent Soft Robots
Shuai Zhou1, Yuanhang Li1, Qianqian Wang1
1Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Design and Manufacture of Micro-Nano Biomedical Instruments, School of Mechanical Engineering, Southeast University, Nanjing 211189, China.
This review explores soft robotics, focusing on integrating actuation and sensing for intelligent control. It surveys current methods and proposes future research directions for advanced soft robot functionality.
Area of Science:
- Robotics
- Materials Science
- Control Systems
Background:
- Soft robotics offers unique advantages in complex environments like medicine and exploration due to its deformability.
- Current research often isolates actuation and sensing, hindering intelligent functionality in soft robots.
- Effective control of soft robots relies heavily on the synergistic interaction between actuation and sensing.
Purpose of the Study:
- To provide a comprehensive survey of actuation and sensing strategies in soft robotics.
- To emphasize the critical need for integrating actuation and sensing for intelligent soft robot design.
- To present methodologies for actuation-sensing integration and suggest future research avenues.
Main Methods:
- Survey of fundamental and multimodal actuation strategies.
- Review of advancements in proprioceptive and haptic sensing and their fusion.
- Categorization of integration methodologies: sensor surface, internal, and closed-loop systems.
Main Results:
- Identified a gap in research focusing on isolated actuation and sensing.
- Presented three key methodologies for integrating actuation and sensing in soft robots.
- Highlighted existing challenges and outlined future research directions.
Conclusions:
- The integration of actuation and sensing is crucial for developing intelligent soft robots.
- Proposed integration methodologies offer a framework for advancing soft robot capabilities.
- Further research is needed to overcome challenges and realize the full potential of integrated soft robotics.
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