Elephant trunks use an adaptable prehensile grip.
Bioinspir Biomim
; 18(2)2023 02 08.
Article
en En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-36652720
ABSTRACT
Elephants have long been observed to grip objects with their trunk, but little is known about how they adjust their strategy for different weights. In this study, we challenge a female African elephant at Zoo Atlanta to lift 20-60 kg barbell weights with only its trunk. We measure the trunk's shape and wrinkle geometry from a frozen elephant trunk at the Smithsonian. We observe several strategies employed to accommodate heavier weights, including accelerating less, orienting the trunk vertically, and wrapping the barbell with a greater trunk length. Mathematical models show that increasing barbell weights are associated with constant trunk tensile force and an increasing barbell-wrapping surface area due to the trunk's wrinkles. Our findings may inspire the design of more adaptable soft robotic grippers that can improve grip using surface morphology such as wrinkles.
Palabras clave
Texto completo:
1
Colección:
01-internacional
Base de datos:
MEDLINE
Asunto principal:
Estructuras Animales
/
Elefantes
/
Fuerza Muscular
Tipo de estudio:
Prognostic_studies
Límite:
Animals
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Bioinspir Biomim
Asunto de la revista:
BIOLOGIA
/
ENGENHARIA BIOMEDICA
Año:
2023
Tipo del documento:
Article
País de afiliación:
Estados Unidos