A fabrication strategy for millimeter-scale, self-sensing soft-rigid hybrid robots

Area of Science:

• Robotics
• Materials Science
• Microfabrication

Background:

• Traditional soft robot assembly is time-consuming and inconsistent, particularly for micro-scale devices.
• Integrating actuators, sensors, and controllers manually presents significant challenges in fabrication.
• Existing methods lack scalability and monolithic integration for complex soft robotic systems.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a scalable, monolithic fabrication method for millimeter-scale soft-rigid hybrid robots.
• To simplify the integration of essential hardware components like actuators and sensors.
• To enable self-sensing capabilities and versatile motion control in micro-robots.

Main Methods:

• Fabrication of soft-rigid hybrid robotic modules using a monolithic approach.
• Actuation via soft-foldable polytetrafluoroethylene film actuators powered by ionic fluid injection.
• Integration of a mechanical controller using rigid-flexible materials for motion encoding.
• Self-sensing using an ionic resistive sensor to detect electrical resistance changes.
• Assembly of distinct modules into a continuum robot with shape-sensing capabilities.

Main Results:

• Successful fabrication of three distinct soft-rigid hybrid robotic modules with translational, bending, and roto-translational degrees of freedom.
• Demonstration of a soft-rigid hybrid continuum robot capable of real-time shape-sensing.
• Validation of the robot's utility in tasks such as object manipulation, needle steering, and optical fiber guidance.

Conclusions:

• The presented monolithic fabrication method offers a scalable and efficient approach for creating integrated soft-rigid hybrid robots.
• The developed system demonstrates potential for advanced applications requiring precise control and real-time feedback, such as minimally invasive surgery and micro-manipulation.
• This work paves the way for more complex and autonomous micro-robotic systems through simplified fabrication and enhanced functionality.