Robotizing the bio-inspiration

Abstract

Imitating natural living beings remains a perpetual curiosity of human beings. The pursuit of replicating biological systems led humans to develop contemporary machines—the robots with diverse range of shapes, sizes, capabilities and applications. Such systems may exhibit strength, control and operation sustainability; however, rigidness of the hard underlying mechanical structures is one of the major constraints in achieving compliance like that of natural organisms and species. This constraint is required to be softened to create biological duos with enhanced structural compliance. This demarcation has led to a new corridor to craft biological mockups, and has made doors opened to exploit new materials, novel design methodologies and innovative control techniques. This paper is an exclusive appraisal to bio-inspired state-of-the-art developments conferring their design specific importance. The methodical study and survey of corresponding structural designs, actuation techniques, sensors, and materials is potentially useful to demonstrate the novelty of bio-inspired robotic developments. Keywords: Soft robotics, bio-inspiration, novelty, flexibility, softness and compliance.