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Updated: Jan 28, 2026

Bioinspired Soft Robot with Incorporated Microelectrodes
Published on: February 28, 2020
Bioinspired Design for Space Robots: Enhancing Exploration Capability and Intelligence
Guangming Chen1,2, Xiang Lei1, Shiwen Li1
1College of Mechanical and Electrical Engineering, Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Nanjing 210016, China.
Abstract:
Space exploration is a major global focus, advancing knowledge and exploiting new resources beyond Earth. Bioinspired design-drawing principles from nature-offers systematic pathways to increase the capability and intelligence of space robots. Prior reviews have emphasized on-orbit manipulators or lunar rovers, while a comprehensive treatment across application domains has been limited. This review synthesizes bioinspired capability and intelligence for space exploration under varied environmental constraints. We highlight four domains: adhesion and grasping for on-orbit servicing; terrain-adaptive mobility on granular and rocky surfaces; exploration intelligence that couples animal-like sensing with decision strategies; and design methodologies for translating biological functions into robotic implementations. Representative applications include gecko-like dry adhesives for debris capture, beetle-inspired climbers for truss operations, sand-moving quadrupeds and mole-inspired burrowers for granular regolith access, and insect flapping-wing robots for flight under Martian conditions. By linking biological analogues to quantitative performance metrics, this review highlights how bioinspired strategies can significantly improve on-orbit inspection, planetary mobility, subsurface access, and autonomous decision-making. Framed by capability and intelligence, bioinspired approaches reveal how biological analogues translate into tangible performance gains for on-orbit inspection, servicing, and long-range planetary exploration.
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