Origami-Inspired Soft Pneumatic Actuators for Soft Robotics

Soft Robots explore compliant materials and innovative design approaches to address intricate challenges across diverse fields. Typically fabricated from supple and resilient materials such as silicon, these robots can bend, adjust, and interact with their surroundings in ways that traditional robots cannot. This innate flexibility allows soft robots to manoeuvre through restricted spaces, manipulate fragile objects, and mould themselves on uneven surfaces. Consequently, they are particularly well suited for applications where contact is a highly dynamic variable, such as in medical procedures and exploration tasks.  Building on the inherent advantages of soft robots, this project aims to  address a critical aspect of their design and functionality: the  actuation components. This project specifically focuses on advancing the actuation components  of soft robots, which are responsible for generating and controlling  their movements. By developing soft pneumatic actuators inspired by origami patterns, combining soft materials with origami principles, we aim to create lightweight and flexible actuators with enhanced force output and controllability. Our research involves designing and fabricating origami-inspired structures using silicone rubbers to achieve controlled deformation and actuation when pneumatic pressure is applied.  The project explores how origami patterns not only shape the actuators but also improve the efficiency and scalability of soft robots, providing a new framework for robotic applications.