Autonomous soft robot slider carries 3 kg of cargo

Recently, the active development of so-called "soft robots" (soft robots). Most of them work on a pneumatic actuator and drag a hose or wire, which limits their mobility.



Engineers from Harvard University made a kind of breakthrough: they designed a completely autonomous soft robot . He carries air compressors, valves, a battery and a controller on his back so he can travel any route.

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In addition, he is able to lift up to 8 kg and drag up to 3.4 kg of additional cargo, move through the snow, withstand the effects of fire, water and hitting a car.



The length of the robot is 65 cm. It was possible to increase the carrying capacity due to the modification of the pneumatic actuator, which made it possible to increase the atmospheric pressure inside the robot to 139 kPa (20 psi).







Such a robot moves rather slowly. Please note: the photos show the time elapsed since the beginning of the movement. In the most intensive mode, its speed is 18 meters per hour.







A standard 3200 mAh battery lasts for 2 hours of movement at a speed of 2 m / h in slow mode (on the left in the illustration) or 18 m / h in fast mode (on the right).







Of course, we still have to work on speed.



One of the advantages of the robot is its relatively low cost. It took $ 1,111 to make a prototype, and this amount can be significantly reduced by using cheaper compressors and valves.