Researchers develop controllable tissue for soft robots

Researchers are working on a ‘robotic tissue’ that can contract and thus be able to move. According to the inventors, specialist clothing can be designed with the elastic fabrics of the so-called ‘soft robots’.

The robotic fabric is made from cotton in which sensors have been incorporated. Also, the elastic material contains thread-like strands of memory metal. The strands coil themselves when heated by electricity, allowing the soft robot to move or squeeze the fabric, Phys.org writes.

According to researchers at Purdue University, the sensors and the memory metal can be incorporated into existing textiles quite easily. This allows clothing to be provided with a ‘smart’ skin. Other applications in aerospace and aviation are mentioned, such as improved ‘g-suits’ that jet pilots and astronauts wear to better withstand the effects of g-forces and weightlessness.

In the future, the researchers believe that it will be easy to quickly assemble soft robots because of the relative simplicity of the electronics and the low weight. For example, the soft robots could be used for exploring planets. Scientists are also thinking of applications for disaster relief with soft robots.