There is provided a continuum robot comprising a first end, a second end and an elongate body, a sensor arranged at the first end and a cooling jacket adjacent the sensor. The cooling jacket comprises a cavity containing a cooling medium for absorbing heat from the sensor.

A continuum device/manipulator includes a first flexible tube, a low melting point (LMP) alloy disposed within the first flexible tube, and a temperature adjustment element that applies heat or cooling to change a phase of the LMP alloy. Changing the phase of the LMP alloy controls a flexibility of the first flexible tube.

A material-mapped actuator useful as, or as part of, a soft robot along with automated methods of design and manufacture. The actuator exhibits mechanical properties that spatially vary along a coordinate system of the actuator. The actuator body has an initial shape with a corresponding initial map of mechanical attributes consisting of locally-varying stiffness at each point in a volume of the actuator body. The actuator is configured to change to a different shape or distribution of mechanical properties upon being activated by an actuation medium. The map of mechanical attributes influences and determines the new shape or distribution. The material-mapped actuator can incorporate a spatially-varying distribution of mechanical properties that dictates multiple desired shapes as the actuation medium is applied, including an actuation sequence in which the actuator transitions from a first shape to a desired intermediate shape(s), and from the intermediate shape to a desired final shape.

An underwater manipulator arm robot comprises: a plurality of links that are connected to one another by joint modules for generating a flexural motion of the robot; multiple thrust devices located at different points along the length of the robot for applying thrust to the robot for propulsion and/or guidance; and at least one tool, or at least one connection point for a tool, attached to the robot; wherein the flexural motion and/or thrust devices enable movement of the robot and control of the orientation and/or location of the tool.

A method is provided for constructing a robotic arm including a plurality of links and a rope assembly. The method includes providing the rope assembly having a rope with a plurality of rope bearings threaded thereon; and attaching the plurality of rope bearings of the rope assembly to the plurality of links of the robotic arm.

A robotic system, such as a continuum robot, that includes at least one hollow tube backbone and an equilibrium modulation wire at least partially positioned within the backbone. The robotic system is configured to adjust a position of an end effector by bending the hollow tube and to further adjust the position of the robotic device by adjusting a linear insertion position of the equilibrium modulation wire inside the hollow tube, wherein adjusting the linear insertion position of the equilibrium modulation wire changes a flexural rigidity of the hollow tube resulting in a change in the resulting bending angle of the robotic device.

Disclosed is a self-propelled soft robot body, including a tube which is internally and axially provided with a tube cavity, and at least one propelling structure, comprising a first driving unit, a second driving unit and a third driving unit, which are evenly fixed on a peripheral wall of the tube cavity, relative to an axis thereof, and along the axis of the tube; and the first driving unit, the second driving unit and the third driving unit are respectively telescopic along the axis of the tube; at least two support structures, with each two adjacent support structures having at least one propelling structure arranged therebetween, the support structures are fixedly connected with the propelling structure and arranged on the peripheral wall of the tube cavity.

The present disclosure provides a joint control method for a serial robot and a serial robot using the same. The method includes: performing a analysis on an end joint in the plurality of joints, and calculating the force of the previous joint acting on the end joint; performing a analysis on each of the other joints in the plurality of joints, and calculating the force of the previous joint acting on the joint; obtaining an angular velocity and an angular acceleration of each joint after obtaining the force of the previous joint acting on the joint, and calculating a torque corresponding to each joint; and projecting the torque corresponding to each joint to a motor corresponding to the joint to obtain a torque to be applied to the motor at a current time. In this manner, which improves the tracking precision of the end joint while reduces the tracking error.

A bionic pneumatic soft gripping device includes a flexible sleeve, a connecting base, a pneumatic artificial muscle, a flexible holder, and a gap tube. The flexible sleeve is an annular jacket-like structure. The flexible holder is a tubular hollow structure having openings at both ends thereof. The pneumatic artificial muscle is wound on the flexible holder. The flexible sleeve is sleeved on the flexible holder connected with the pneumatic artificial muscle through the opening of the flexible sleeve. The pneumatic artificial muscle is connected to a tube joint via a fastening sleeve, and the tube joint is connected to the gap tube. The bionic pneumatic flexible gripping device of the present disclosure has advantages of large gripping force and compliancy, thereby effectively gripping objects in various shapes within its gripping size range.

A continuum device/manipulator includes a first flexible tube, a low melting point (LMP) alloy disposed within the first flexible tube, and a temperature adjustment element that applies heat or cooling to change a phase of the LMP alloy. Changing the phase of the LMP alloy controls a flexibility of the first flexible tube.