Soft 3D-Printed Robots

A group of researchers from the Johannes Kepler University in Austria developed a gel for 3D printing soft robots that can be recycled at the end of their usable life. Thanks to the use of soft materials, the robots mimic the features of water-borne creatures and the way they move.

Using sugar and gelatin, the research team created a kind of ink that can be applied to the printing process. As part of the tests of this innovative material, a finger-like form was created with the new ink and it uses compressed air to control motion. As the researchers say, "This process enables fast and cost-effective prototyping of resilient, soft robotic applications from gels that stretch to six times their original length, as well as an accessible recycling procedure with zero waste."