Amphibious Miniature Soft Jumping Robot with On-Demand In-Flight Maneuver

In nature, some semiaquatic arthropods evolve biomechanics for jumping on the water surface with the controlled burst of kinetic energy. Emulating these creatures, miniature jumping robots deployable on the water surface have been developed, but few of them achieve the controllability comparable to biological systems. The limited controllability and agility of miniature robots constrain their applications, especially in the biomedical field where dexterous and precise manipulation is required. Herein, an insect-scale magnetoelastic robot with improved controllability is designed. The robot can adaptively regulate its energy output to generate controllable jumping motion by tuning magnetic and elastic strain energy. Dynamic and kinematic models are developed to predict the jumping trajectories of the robot. On-demand actuation can thus be applied to precisely control the pose and motion of the robot during the flight phase. The robot is also capable of making adaptive amphibious locomotion and performing various tasks with integrated functional modules.

Automated summary

To mimic the biomechanics of semiaquatic arthropods, researchers have developed mini jumping robots that can be deployed on the water surface, but very few of them possess controllability comparable to living systems. To address this issue, an insect-scale magnetoelastic robot has been designed with improved controllability, capable of generating controllable jumping motion by adjusting magnetic and elastic strain energy. Dynamic and kinematic models have been developed to predict the robot's jumping trajectories, allowing for precise control of its pose and motion during flight. The robot is also capable of adaptive amphibious locomotion and performing various tasks with integrated functional modules.