Robots that enthusiasts could build for under $500, and that are smart enough to walk off the 3D printer that formed them, have been demonstrated by a team at the University of Edinburgh. 

The team of researchers used a 3D printer to create soft robots that can walk away from the printer once complete. The palm-sized four-legged devices have no electronic parts, and are made from soft plastics - the bill of materials (BOM) for the robot comprises only one line—a flexible TPU filament.. The robots are powered by air pressure; once printed, the devices are connected to a compressed air supply before walking out of the machine on which they were made.

The research team says soft machines have huge potential for use in areas such as nuclear decommissioning, the biomedical sector and in space.

While other research teams have made and demonstrated soft robots that can walk away from their manufacturing area, the new system is much more cost effective, as it is based on an open source Flex printing platform. The Flex printer is relatively cheap and small, fitting onto a desktop. The CAD files and code are being made available via a GitHub repository that is being administrated through the Soft Robotics Forum, an online platform hosted by the IEEE Technical Committee for Soft Robotics.

To ensure that the robot would be capable of walking off of the bed, the team minimized its size and mass footprint by using a highly integrated Fluidic Logic architecture; its geometry and routing are automatically generated and optimized for the 3D printing method. At the core of the robot is a CMOS pneumatic ring oscillator, which outputs a 3-phase oscillating pressure signal.

The setup developed by the team can be assembled for around $500 using off-the-shelf parts. The researchers say that building and operating the new system requires little prior knowledge, with first-time users able to assemble it and begin making robots in just a few days. 

One innovation by the team is the use of an upside-down print orientation, which significantly expands the range of printable geometries. 

The designs have been made publicly available to broaden access to soft robotic technologies and to help foster collaboration and improvements to the system. The findings were published in the journal Device, part of the Cell Press group of journals. The research was funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC).

The lead engineer on the project was Maks Gepner, with support from Jonah Mack, both PhD students in the Centre for Doctoral Training in Robotics and Autonomous Systems. 

More Information

Paper Describing The Soft Robots

CAD Files And Instructions Repository

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