Intelligent Rock-Climbing Robot Capable of Multimodal Locomotion and Hybrid Bioinspired Attachment.

Rock-climbing robots have significant potential in fieldwork and planetary exploration. However, they currently face limitations such as a lack of stability and adaptability on extreme terrains, slow locomotion, and single functionality. This study introduces a novel multimodal and adaptive rock-climbing robot (MARCBot), which addresses these limitations through spiny grippers that draw inspiration from morpho-functionalities observed in beetles, arboreal birds, and hoofed animals.

Clap-and-Fling Mechanism of Climbing-Flight Coccinella Septempunctata.

Previous studies on the clap-fling mechanism have predominantly focused on the initial downward and forward phases of flight in miniature insects, either during hovering or forward flight. However, this study presents the first comprehensive kinematic data of Coccinella septempunctata during climbing flight. It reveals, for the first time, that a clap-and-fling mechanism occurs during the initial upward and backward phase of the hind wings' motion.

Structure-Foldable and Performance-Tailorable PI Paper-Based Triboelectric Nanogenerators Processed and Controlled by Laser-Induced Graphene.

Laser-induced graphene (LIG) technology has provided a new manufacturing strategy for the rapid and scalable assembling of triboelectric nanogenerators (TENG). However, current LIG-based TENG commonly rely on polymer films, e.g.

Flexible calorimetric flow sensor with unprecedented sensitivity and directional resolution for multiple flight parameter detection.

The accurate perception of multiple flight parameters, such as the angle of attack, angle of sideslip, and airflow velocity, is essential for the flight control of micro air vehicles, which conventionally rely on arrays of pressure or airflow velocity sensors. Here, we present the estimation of multiple flight parameters using a single flexible calorimetric flow sensor featuring a sophisticated structural design with a suspended array of highly sensitive vanadium oxide thermistors. The proposed sensor achieves an unprecedented velocity resolution of 0.

Teleoperation of an Anthropomorphic Robot Hand with a Metamorphic Palm and Tunable-Stiffness Soft Fingers.

Teleoperation in soft robotics can endow soft robots with the ability to perform complex tasks through human-robot interaction. In this study, we propose a teleoperated anthropomorphic soft robot hand with variable degrees of freedom (DOFs) and a metamorphic palm. The soft robot hand consists of four pneumatic-actuated fingers, which can be heated to tune stiffness.

Octopus-inspired sensorized soft arm for environmental interaction.

Octopuses can whip their soft arms with a characteristic "bend propagation" motion to capture prey with sensitive suckers. This relatively simple strategy provides models for robotic grasping, controllable with a small number of inputs, and a highly deformable arm with sensing capabilities. Here, we implemented an electronics-integrated soft octopus arm (E-SOAM) capable of reaching, sensing, grasping, and interacting in a large domain.

Atomistic Modeling of the Effect of Temperature on Interfacial Properties of 3D-Printed Continuous Carbon Fiber-Reinforced Polyamide 6 Composite: From Processing to Loading.

The combination of continuous fiber-reinforced thermoplastic composites (CFRTPCs) and the continuous fiber 3D printing (CF3DP) technique enables the rapid production of complex structural composites. In these 3D-printed composites, stress transfer primarily relies on the fiber-resin interface, making it a critical performance factor. The interfacial properties are significantly influenced by the temperatures applied during the loading and forming processes.

Design and Finite Element Analysis of Artificial Braided Meniscus Model.

Currently, artificial meniscus prostheses are mostly homogenous, low strength, and difficult to mimic the distribution of internal fibers in the native meniscus. To promote the overall mechanical performance of meniscus prostheses, this paper designed a new artificial braided meniscus model and conducted finite element analysis. Firstly, we designed the spatial fiber interweaving structure of meniscus model to mimic the internal fiber distribution of the native meniscus.

Bending-Sensitive Optical Waveguide Sensor With Carbon-Fiber Layer for Monitoring Grip Strength.

With the gradual popularity of wearable devices, the demand for high-performance flexible wearable sensors is also increasing. Flexible sensors based on the optical principle have advantages e.g.

Ultrasensitive Humidity Sensors with Synergy between Superhydrophilic Porous Carbon Electrodes and Phosphorus-Doped Dielectric Electrolyte.

Capacitive humidity sensors have been used for human health monitoring, but their performance may be poor in terms of sensitivity and response time, because of limitations in sensing materials and insufficient knowledge about sensing mechanisms. Herein, a new combination of humidity sensing materials to assemble thin-film based capacitive-type sensors is proposed by using PA-doped polybenzimidazole (PA-PBI) as an electrolyte and laser-carbonized PA-PBI as a carbon electrode (PA-PBI-C). Based on PA involved laser scribing, the flexible sensor can reach excellent humidity-sensing performances with an ultrahigh sensitivity (1.

Laser-Induced Graphene Enabled Additive Manufacturing of Multifunctional 3D Architectures with Freeform Structures.

3D printing has become an important strategy for constructing graphene smart structures with arbitrary shapes and complexities. Compared with graphene oxide ink/gel/resin based manners, laser-induced graphene (LIG) is unique for facile and scalable assembly of 1D and 2D structures but still faces size and shape obstacles for constructing 3D macrostructures. In this work, a brand-new LIG based additive manufacturing (LIG-AM) protocol is developed to form bulk 3D graphene with freeform structures without introducing extra binders, templates, and catalysts.

Small-Data-Driven Temporal Convolutional Capsule Network for Locomotion Mode Recognition of Robotic Prostheses.

Locomotion mode recognition has been shown to substantially contribute to the precise control of robotic lower-limb prostheses under different walking conditions. In this study, we proposed a temporal convolutional capsule network (TCCN) which integrates the spatial-temporal-based, dilation-convolution-based, dyna- mic routing and vector-based features for recognizing locomotion mode recognition with small data rather than big-data-based neural networks for robotic prostheses. TCCN proposed in this study has four characteristics, which extracts the (1) spatial-temporal information in the data and then makes (2) dilated convolution to deal with small data, and uses (3) dynamic routing, which produces some similarities to the human brain to process the data as a (4) vector, which is different from other scalar-based networks, such as convolutional neural network (CNN).

Touchless interactive teaching of soft robots through flexible bimodal sensory interfaces.

In this paper, we propose a multimodal flexible sensory interface for interactively teaching soft robots to perform skilled locomotion using bare human hands. First, we develop a flexible bimodal smart skin (FBSS) based on triboelectric nanogenerator and liquid metal sensing that can perform simultaneous tactile and touchless sensing and distinguish these two modes in real time. With the FBSS, soft robots can react on their own to tactile and touchless stimuli.

Biodegradable-Glass-Fiber Reinforced Hydrogel Composite with Enhanced Mechanical Performance and Cell Proliferation for Potential Cartilage Repair.

Polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) hydrogels are promising implants due to the similarity of their low-friction behavior to that of cartilage tissue, and also due to their non-cytotoxicity. However, their poor mechanical resistance and insufficient durability restricts their application in this area. With the development of biodegradable glass fibers (BGF), which show desirable mechanical performance and bioactivity for orthopedic engineering, we designed a novel PVA hydrogel composite reinforced with biodegradable glass fibers, intended for use in artificial cartilage repair with its excellent cytocompatibility and long-term mechanical stability.

Anti-Disturbance Sliding Mode Control of a Novel Variable Stiffness Actuator for the Rehabilitation of Neurologically Disabled Patients.

Lower limb exoskeletons are widely used for rehabilitation training of patients suffering from neurological disorders. To improve the human-robot interaction performance, series elastic actuators (SEAs) with low output impedance have been developed. However, the adaptability and control performance are limited by the constant spring stiffness used in current SEAs.

3D-Laminated Graphene with Combined Laser Irradiation and Resin Infiltration toward Designable Macrostructure and Multifunction.

Macroscopic 3D graphene has become a significant topic for satisfying the continuously upgraded smart structures and devices. Compared with liquid assembling and catalytic templating methods, laser-induced graphene (LIG) is showing facile and scalable advantages but still faces limited sizes and geometries by using template induction or on-site lay-up strategies. In this work, a new LIG protocol is developed for facile stacking and shaping 3D LIG macrostructures by laminating layers of LIG papers (LIGPs) with combined resin infiltration and hot pressing.

Cantilever-based differential pressure sensor with a bio-inspired bristled configuration.

Inspired by the bristled wing configuration of tiny insects, we proposed a novel polyimide (PI) cantilever-based differential pressure (DP) sensor. This bristled PI cantilever with a thin metallic piezoresistor was designed to detect the pressure difference that induced the aerodynamic loading on the surface of the cantilever. Owing to the aerodynamic characteristics of the bristled cantilever, the DP-sensor with the bristled cantilever could not only retain a comparable sensitivity with that of the paddle cantilever under low differential pressures but also achieve a higher theoretical upper detection limit due to the enhanced leakage of the bristles.

Design optimization and experimental study of a novel mechanism for a hover-able bionic flapping-wing micro air vehicle.

has a natural ultra-high flying ability and maneuverability. Especially its ability to fly flexibly in the air, makes it more adaptable to the harsh ecological environment. In this study, a bionic flapping-wing micro air vehicle (FMAV) is designed and fabricated by mimicking the flight mode of.

Tensegrity metamaterials for soft robotics.

3D-printed flexible tensegrities with metamaterial properties enable customizable complex locomotion in soft robots.

Parametric generation of three-dimensional gait for robot-assisted rehabilitation.

For robot-assisted rehabilitation and assessment of patients with motor dysfunction, the parametric generation of their normal gait as the input for the robot is essential to match with the features of the patient to a greater extent. In addition, the gait needs to be in three-dimensional space, which meets the physiological structure of the human better, rather than only on a sagittal plane. Thus, a method for the parametric generation of three-dimensional gait based on the influence of the motion parameters and structure parameters is presented.

Knee exoskeleton enhanced with artificial intelligence to provide assistance-as-needed.

Robotic therapy is a useful method applied during rehabilitation of stroke patients (to regain motor functions). To ensure active participation of the patient, assistance-as-needed is provided during robotic training. However, most existing studies are based on a predetermined desired trajectory, which significantly limits the use of this method for more complex scenarios.

Development of an EMG-Controlled Knee Exoskeleton to Assist Home Rehabilitation in a Game Context.

As a leading cause of loss of functional movement, stroke often makes it difficult for patients to walk. Interventions to aid motor recovery in stroke patients should be carried out as a matter of urgency. However, muscle activity in the knee is usually too weak to generate overt movements, which poses a challenge for early post-stroke rehabilitation training.

Training wrist extensor function and detecting unwanted movement strategies in an EMG-controlled visuomotor task.

Stroke patients often suffer from severe upper limb paresis. Rehabilitation treatment typically targets motor impairments as early as possible, however, muscular contractions, particularly in the wrist and fingers, are often too weak to produce overt movements, making the initial phase of rehabilitation training difficult. Here we propose a new training tool whereby electromyographic (EMG) activity is measured in the wrist extensors and serves as a proxy of voluntary corticomotor drive.

Investigation of feet functions of large ruminants with a decoupled model of equivalent mechanism.

Cloven hooves of ruminants adapt to diverse terrain, provide propulsive force and support the whole body during movement in natural environments. To reveal how the feet ensure terrain adaptability by choosing the proper configurations and terrain conditions, we model the feet of ruminants as an equivalent mechanism with flexion-extension and lateral movement decoupled. The upper part of the equivalent mechanism can flex and extend, while the lower part performs the lateral movement.