Soft Robotics: Learning from Ancient Creatures
Soft robotics involves creating robots using soft materials, making them flexible and safe for human interaction. These robots find use in various applications such as medical devices and improving efficiency in tasks. They also hold potential for exploring the ocean and space, as well as performing specific jobs in those environments.
Richard Desatnik from Carnegie Mellon University, in collaboration with paleontologists from Europe, explores the movement of ancient animals to enhance our understanding of locomotion. Their focus is on pleurocystitids, a sea creature that lived around 500 million years ago.
By studying fossils and using CT scans and computer simulations, the team developed a soft robot that mimics the pleurocystitids’ movement. Their findings indicate that a sweeping motion of the creature’s muscular stem helped it glide along the ocean floor. They also discovered that a longer stem made the creature faster without requiring much more energy.
These underwater soft robots may have applications in geologic surveying and underwater machinery maintenance. The researchers’ approach, called paleobionics, has the potential to further our understanding of evolution, biomechanics, and soft robot movements.
These findings will be presented at the 68th Biophysical Society Annual Meeting, to be held in February 2024. This research not only advances our knowledge of soft robotics but also contributes to a deeper understanding of extinct animals and their impact on modern technology.