Magnetically Actuated Trigger Transient Soft Actuators Comprising On-Demand Photo-Initiated and Thermo-Degradable Polypropylene Carbonate-Photo-Acid Generator.

Lifetime-reconfigurable soft robots have emerged as a new class of robots, emphasizing the unmet needs of futuristic sustainability and security. Trigger-transient materials that can both actuate and degrade on-demand are crucial for achieving life-reconfigurable soft robots. Here, we propose the use of transient and magnetically actuating materials that can decompose under ultraviolet light and heat, achieved by adding photo-acid generator (PAG) and magnetic particles (Sr-ferrite) to poly(propylene carbonate) (PPC).

Spikebot: A Multigait Tensegrity Robot with Linearly Extending Struts.

Numerous recent research efforts have leveraged networks of rigid struts and flexible cables, called tensegrity structures, to create highly resilient and packable mobile robots. However, the locomotion of existing tensegrity robots is limited in terms of both speed and number of distinct locomotion modes, restricting the environments that a robot is capable of exploring. In this study, we present a tensegrity robot inspired by the volumetric expansion of Tetraodontidae.

Lifetime-configurable soft robots via photodegradable silicone elastomer composites.

Developing soft robots that can control their own life cycle and degrade on-demand while maintaining hyperelasticity is a notable research challenge. On-demand degradable soft robots, which conserve their original functionality during operation and rapidly degrade under specific external stimulation, present the opportunity to self-direct the disappearance of temporary robots. This study proposes soft robots and materials that exhibit excellent mechanical stretchability and can degrade under ultraviolet light by mixing a fluoride-generating diphenyliodonium hexafluorophosphate with a silicone resin.

Denosumab-associated jaw bone necrosis in cancer patients: retrospective descriptive case series study.

Background: Denosumab (DMB) is a bone antiresorptive agent used to treat osteoporosis or metastatic cancer of the bones. However, denosumab-associated osteonecrosis of the jaw (DRONJ) has become a common complication in cancer patients. The prevalence of osteonecrosis of the jaw (ONJ) in cancer patients is estimated to be similar for both bisphosphonate-related cases (1.

Soft Actuators Made of Discrete Grains.

Recent work has demonstrated the potential of actuators consisting of bulk elastomers with phase-changing inclusions for generating high forces and large volumetric expansions. Simultaneously, granular assemblies have been shown to enable tunable properties via different packings, dynamic moduli via jamming, and compatibility with various printing methods via suspension in carrier fluids. Herein, granular actuators are introduced, which represent a new class of soft actuators made of discrete grains.

Static-state particle fabrication via rapid vitrification of a thixotropic medium.

Functional particles that respond to external stimuli are spurring technological evolution across various disciplines. While large-scale production of functional particles is needed for their use in real-life applications, precise control over particle shapes and directional properties has remained elusive for high-throughput processes. We developed a high-throughput emulsion-based process that exploits rapid vitrification of a thixotropic medium to manufacture diverse functional particles in large quantities.

Printed and Laser-Activated Liquid Metal-Elastomer Conductors Enabled by Ethanol/PDMS/Liquid Metal Double Emulsions.

Soft electronic systems require stretchable, printable conductors for applications in soft robotics, wearable technologies, and human-machine interfaces. Gallium-based room-temperature liquid metals (LMs) have emerged as promising candidates, and recent liquid metal-embedded elastomers (LMEEs) have demonstrated favorable properties such as stable conductivity during strain, cyclic durability, and patternability. Here, we present an ethanol/polydimethylsiloxane/liquid metal (EtOH/PDMS/LM) double emulsion ink that enables a fast, scalable method to print LM conductors with high conductivity (7.

Sustainable manufacturing of sensors onto soft systems using self-coagulating conductive Pickering emulsions.

Compliant sensors based on composite materials are necessary components for geometrically complex systems such as wearable devices or soft robots. Composite materials consisting of polymer matrices and conductive fillers have facilitated the manufacture of compliant sensors due to their potential to be scaled in printing processes. Printing composite materials generally entails the use of solvents, such as toluene or cyclohexane, to dissolve the polymer resin and thin down the material to a printable viscosity.

Roboticizing fabric by integrating functional fibers.

Fabrics are ubiquitous materials that have conventionally been passive assemblies of interlacing, inactive fibers. However, the recent emergence of active fibers with actuation, sensing, and structural capabilities provides the opportunity to impart robotic function into fabric substrates. Here we present an implementation of robotic fabrics by integrating functional fibers into conventional fabrics using typical textile manufacturing techniques.

Reconfigurable soft body trajectories using unidirectionally stretchable composite laminae.

Compliant, continuum structures allow living creatures to perform complex tasks inaccessible to artificial rigid systems. Although advancements in hyper-elastic materials have spurred the development of synthetic soft structures (i.e.

Mechanochemical functionalization of disulfide linked hydrogels.

Poly(ethylene glycol) hydrogels with disulfide linkages are functionalized through applied force. Compression or tension induces bond rupture at the relatively weak disulfide linkages, which will subsequently react through Michael-type addition with an acceptor molecule within the gel. We demonstrate the utility of this approach by patterning cell adhesion proteins through compression of a lithographically structured stamp, where cells predominately adhere to the compressed regions.