Robotic Arm Design Influenced by Octopus Tentacles and Origami

Engineers from Ohio State University and the Georgia Tech have developed a robotic arm that moves like an octopus tentacle without the need for internal motors. Most robotic arms require motors and control units to actuate, making them heavy and potentially harmful for humans working in the same area. The new arm doesn’t require any internal actuation hardware but instead relies on magnetic fields for movement.

While the team took inspiration from the way an octopus moves its tentacles, mimicking how they stretch and twist, they also looked to the art of origami, providing each segment with a contracting/expanding hexagonal shape. Those segments are modular in design and can be added or removed depending on the application and were designed using soft silicon plates embedded with magnetic particles. The plates are connected to tilting plastic panels that conform to the Kresling origami pattern, allowing them to expand or contract using a twisting motion.

Once each segment is connected, the arm is then placed within a controllable magnetic field. Because each segment has its own magnetic particles, the engineers can actuate each by varying the field strength. This provides the arm with 360° movements and can change its length by compressing and expanding each segment. The team states that the arm could be controlled using a game pad for fine movement by computerizing the magnetic field. They hope that the new arm could be used in biomedical applications, assisting with minimally-invasive procedures, including breathing tube or catheter insertion. It should be noted that the arm doesn’t have any physical strength, but the researchers hope to rectify that issue in future revisions.