Grand challenges for burrowing soft robots
Robotic burrowing holds promise for applications in agriculture, resource extraction, and infrastructure development, but current approaches are ineffective, inefficient, or cause significant environmental disruption. In contrast, natural burrowers penetrate substrates with minimal disturbance, prov...
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| Main Authors: | , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2025-02-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Robotics and AI |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/frobt.2025.1525186/full |
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| _version_ | 1849721510640484352 |
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| author | Caitlin L. Le Osman Dogan Yirmibesoglu Sean Even Trevor Buckner Yasemin Ozkan-Aydin Rebecca Kramer-Bottiglio |
| author_facet | Caitlin L. Le Osman Dogan Yirmibesoglu Sean Even Trevor Buckner Yasemin Ozkan-Aydin Rebecca Kramer-Bottiglio |
| author_sort | Caitlin L. Le |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Robotic burrowing holds promise for applications in agriculture, resource extraction, and infrastructure development, but current approaches are ineffective, inefficient, or cause significant environmental disruption. In contrast, natural burrowers penetrate substrates with minimal disturbance, providing biomechanical principles that could inspire more efficient and sustainable mechanisms. A notable feature of many natural burrowers is their reliance on soft body compositions, raising the question of whether softness contributes to their burrowing success. This review explores the role of soft materials in biological burrowing and their implications for robotic design. We examine the mechanisms that soft-bodied organisms and soft robots employ for submerging and subterranean locomotion, focusing on how softness enhances efficiency and adaptability in granular media. We analyze the gaps between the capabilities of natural burrowers and soft robotic burrowers, identify grand challenges, and propose opportunities to enhance robotic burrowing performance. By bridging biological principles with engineering innovation, this review aims to inform the development of next-generation burrowing robots capable of operating with the efficiency and efficacy seen in nature. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-0738f04bf276408e8219ff93700f4cfe |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 2296-9144 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-02-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Robotics and AI |
| spelling | doaj-art-0738f04bf276408e8219ff93700f4cfe2025-08-20T03:11:38ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Robotics and AI2296-91442025-02-011210.3389/frobt.2025.15251861525186Grand challenges for burrowing soft robotsCaitlin L. Le0Osman Dogan Yirmibesoglu1Sean Even2Trevor Buckner3Yasemin Ozkan-Aydin4Rebecca Kramer-Bottiglio5Department of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science, Yale University, New Haven, CT, United StatesDepartment of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science, Yale University, New Haven, CT, United StatesDepartment of Electrical Engineering, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN, United StatesDepartment of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science, Yale University, New Haven, CT, United StatesDepartment of Electrical Engineering, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN, United StatesDepartment of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science, Yale University, New Haven, CT, United StatesRobotic burrowing holds promise for applications in agriculture, resource extraction, and infrastructure development, but current approaches are ineffective, inefficient, or cause significant environmental disruption. In contrast, natural burrowers penetrate substrates with minimal disturbance, providing biomechanical principles that could inspire more efficient and sustainable mechanisms. A notable feature of many natural burrowers is their reliance on soft body compositions, raising the question of whether softness contributes to their burrowing success. This review explores the role of soft materials in biological burrowing and their implications for robotic design. We examine the mechanisms that soft-bodied organisms and soft robots employ for submerging and subterranean locomotion, focusing on how softness enhances efficiency and adaptability in granular media. We analyze the gaps between the capabilities of natural burrowers and soft robotic burrowers, identify grand challenges, and propose opportunities to enhance robotic burrowing performance. By bridging biological principles with engineering innovation, this review aims to inform the development of next-generation burrowing robots capable of operating with the efficiency and efficacy seen in nature.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/frobt.2025.1525186/fullsoft roboticsburrowingbioinspirationgranular mediasoil |
| spellingShingle | Caitlin L. Le Osman Dogan Yirmibesoglu Sean Even Trevor Buckner Yasemin Ozkan-Aydin Rebecca Kramer-Bottiglio Grand challenges for burrowing soft robots Frontiers in Robotics and AI soft robotics burrowing bioinspiration granular media soil |
| title | Grand challenges for burrowing soft robots |
| title_full | Grand challenges for burrowing soft robots |
| title_fullStr | Grand challenges for burrowing soft robots |
| title_full_unstemmed | Grand challenges for burrowing soft robots |
| title_short | Grand challenges for burrowing soft robots |
| title_sort | grand challenges for burrowing soft robots |
| topic | soft robotics burrowing bioinspiration granular media soil |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/frobt.2025.1525186/full |
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