Advancements in Hybrid Robotics: Balancing Strength With Flexibility
MIE Assistant Professor Jeffrey Lipton developed a hybrid—soft and hard—robot with enough torque to screw in a lightbulb and the flexibility not to crush the glass. His research, “Bridging Hard and Soft: Mechanical Metamaterials Enable Rigid Torque Transmission in Soft Robotics” was published in Science Robotics.
This article originally appeared on Northeastern Global News. It was published by Cyrus Moulton. Main photo: Jeffrey Lipton, assistant professor of mechanical and industrial engineering at Northeastern, has developed a hybrid soft and hard robot. Photo by Matthew Modoono/Northeastern University
Northeastern engineers develop hybrid robot that balances strength and flexibility—and can screw in a lightbulb
How many robots does it take to screw in a lightbulb?
The answer is more complicated than you might think.
New research from Northeastern University upends the riddle by making a robot that is both flexible and sensitive enough to handle the lightbulb and strong enough to apply the necessary torque.
Lipton’s new robot is both flexible and sensitive enough to handle a lightbulb and strong enough to apply the necessary torque. Photo by Matthew Modoono/Northeastern University
“What we found is that by thinking about the bodies of robots and how we can make new materials for them, we can actually make a robot that has the benefits of both rigid and soft robots,” says Jeffrey Lipton, assistant professor of mechanical and industrial engineering at Northeastern.
“It’s flexible, extendable and compliant like an elephant trunk or octopus tentacle, but can also apply torques like a traditional industrial robot,” he adds.
Lipton explains that there are currently two types of robots in the world: rigid (or hard) robots and soft robots.
Rigid robots are your typical industrial robots. They start and stop automatically to perform precise tasks at great speed—and, often great danger—to humans.
“You like to put them behind cages because if they’re moving fast enough to be useful, they’re probably also moving fast enough to hurt you,” Lipton says.
These robots are great at spinning things, capable of applying torque at a distance, Lipton says.
Soft robots, meanwhile, are bioinspired—think an elephant trunk or an octopus tentacle—and can reach and pull and interact in complex environments and around people.
 |
 |
 Lipton with the hybrid soft and hard robot. Photos by Matthew Modoono/Northeastern University |
Read the full story at Northeastern Global News