Biodegradable robots to become a thing of reality soon 

Are you ready to welcome the robots of the future? Well, they are here. They are not only soft and flexible (enough to squeeze into tight spaces and bounce off walls), but also biodegradable. In fact, once used, one can toss them into an industrial compost bin for decomposition. These robots can dissolve naturally in soil over a few months, making them eco-friendly, unlike their earlier prototypes.  

Wondering who thought of them? Well, a mechanical engineering graduate student Ellen Rumley and a team of engineers based at the University of Colorado Boulder, USA published this unique vision in the journal Science Advances and described their latest development as a cutting-edge robotic actuator or ‘artificial muscles.’ These can fuel robotic arms and legs with life-like motions and work by shifting fluid around squishy sacs. The team has developed this keeping in mind sustainability and hopes that other robotics engineer will also consider the same in the future.  

But, how was the project conceived? Well, the credit goes to Christoph Keplinger, a former assistant professor of mechanical engineering at the University of Colorado Boulder. He is also the director at the Max Plank Institute for Intelligent Systems, Germany and founder of Artimus Robotics, a company selling HASEL actuators. Back in 2018, he developed a line of artificial muscles called Hydraulically Amplified Self-Healing Electrostatic (HASEL) actuators. Similar to human muscles, these actuators can bend robotic arms like a bicep or squeeze claws and grippers. However, till date, they couldn’t be recycled.  

And now, as part of the latest study, the team has made a series of soft and flexible robotic actuators from sustainable raw materials. They are versatile and can flex for 100000 cycles without tearing apart. Besides, it can also match the key performance metrics of the earlier actuators.  

But, how these will be better suited for real-world use? For starters, they can be designed for one-time or short-term use, such as food handling and medical applications. In addition, the flexibility of the robots will no longer be a limiting factor in their physical capabilities. But now, the brand-new model can make the robots more life-like.  

As for HASEL actuators, they are made up of transformer oil inside plastic pouches, which are partially covered by a thin layer of an electrical conductor. Once electricity is applied across the conductors, the pouch zips together, thus squeezing the fluid from one end to the other. In turn, the pouches change shape and can apply force to devices like a robotic limb. Now, in these new models, the plastic pouches have been replaced by eco-friendly polyester blend.  

Scientists are hoping this will usher in a new age of robotics. Cool, isn’t it?