AssetID: 54808443
Headline: RAW VIDEO: Scientists Create 3D-Printed 'Soft Robot' That Walks Off The Machine That Made It
Caption: Scientists at the University of Edinburgh have developed the first soft robots capable of walking immediately after being printed. The four-legged, palm-sized devices are produced by a custom-made 3D printer using only soft plastic and powered by air pressure. Once printed, they are hooked up to a compressed air supply and walk straight off the machine they were made on – no extra assembly, electronics or specialist skills required. Soft robots, made from pliable materials rather than rigid components, have long been seen as ideal for sensitive tasks, from biomedical procedures to handling radioactive waste. But their real-world use has been held back by costly and complex design processes, as well as the need for niche expertise. Now, a team of researchers has created a desktop printing system that dramatically lowers those barriers. Known as the Flex Printer, the setup costs under £400 and can be assembled using widely available parts. Lead engineer Maks Gepner, a PhD student at Edinburgh’s Centre for Doctoral Training in Robotics and Autonomous Systems, said: “It used to take years to figure out how to print using these materials. Using our new platform, anyone can now easily print things which were previously thought to be impossible. This is a game-changer for engineers and artists alike. “Our hope is that this technology will help drive the next wave of research breakthroughs. Without the long-standing manufacturing and design bottlenecks holding it back, we believe soft robotics is ready to make a major real-world impact." Gepner and fellow PhD student Jonah Mack worked on the project under the supervision of Professor Adam A. Stokes, Head of the Institute for Bioengineering at the University of Edinburgh. The team has made their designs freely available online, in a bid to widen access to soft robotic technologies and encourage collaboration. They say even first-time users can begin making robots within days. Their findings are published in Device, a journal from the Cell Press group. The work was supported by the UK’s Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC).
Keywords: feature,photo feature,photo story,Soft robotics,3D printing,Edinburgh,Flex Printer,air-powered robots,low-cost manufacturing,engineering innovation,desktop fabrication,compliant materials,automation,biomedical technology,open-source design,tech,tecnology,future,robots,3D-Printing
PersonInImage: Soft robot walking