A recent study from a team of researchers led by Shyni Varghese, professor at Duke University, has reported a smart soft robot called DraBot that exhibits controlled skimming motion over water surfaces with environmental sensing capabilities.

The proof-of-concept demonstration could be a precursor to more advanced, autonomous, long-range environmental sentinels for monitoring a wide range of potential telltale signs of problems, such as pH changes or the presence of oil.

 

 

Soft robotics is an emerging research area that focuses on creating devices using compliant materials, such as hydrogels and elastomers. The soft materials allow these robots to explore constrained environments where conventional robots based on hard materials cannot go and perform delicate tasks while passively interacting with surrounding environments.

 

 

In the case of DraBot, the hydrogel was incorporated onto one side of the wings. When the robot encounters an acidic condition, the wings heal together, which disables the flapping. This impairs the forward motion of the robot causing it to take a turn – thus acting as a sensing and reporting mechanism for water acidity.

 

 

Another feature of the DraBot is its changing wing color in response to changes in temperature — a trait that it shares with certain species of dragonflies that exhibit temperature sensitive color change in certain body parts. Microporous hydrophobic structures present in the wings and abdomen help the robot stay afloat and assist with locomotion, and also have the capability to absorb hydrophobic impurities, such as oil.

According to Advanced Science News