02018nas a2200229 4500008004100000022001500041245010300056210006900159300001200228490000700240520132900247653001301576100001801589700001401607700002101621700001501642700002001657700001501677700001701692700001501709856006401724 2017 eng d a1070-9932 00aThe Quest for Natural Machine Motion: An Open Platform to Fast-Prototyping Articulated Soft Robots0 aQuest for Natural Machine Motion An Open Platform to FastPrototy a48 - 560 v243 a
Soft robots are one of the most significant recent evolutions in robotics. They rely on compliant physical structures purposefully designed to embody desired characteristics. Since their introduction, they have shown remarkable applicability in overcoming their rigid counterparts in such areas as interaction with humans, adaptability, energy efficiency, and maximization of peak performance. Nonetheless, we believe
that research on novel soft robot applications is still slowed by the difficulty in obtaining or developing a working soft robot structure to explore novel applications.
In this article, we present the Natural Machine Motion Initiative (NMMI), a modular open platform that aims to provide the scientific community with tools for fast and easy prototyping of articulated soft robots. Such a platform is composed of three main open hardware modules: the Qbmoves variable-stiffness actuators (VSAs) to build the main robotic structure, soft end effectors (EEs) to interact with the world, and a pool of application-specific add-ons. We also discuss many novel uses of the platform to rapidly prototype (RP) and test new robotic structures with original soft capabilities, and we propose NMMI- based experiments.
10aRobotics1 aDella Santina1 aPiazza, C1 aGasparri, G., M.1 aBonilla, M1 aCatalano, M. G.1 aGrioli, G.1 aGarabini, M.1 aBicchi, A. uhttp://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?arnumber=7857692