Single-Electrode Electrostatic Repulsion Phenomenon for Remote Actuation and Manipulation.

One of the fundamental principles of electrostatics is that an uncharged object will be attracted to a charged object through electrostatic induction as the two approaches one another. We refer to the charged object as a single electrode and examine the scenario where a positive voltage is applied. Because of electrostatic induction phenomenon, single-electrode electrostatics only generates electrostatic attraction forces. Here, we discover that single-electrode electrostatics can generate electrostatic repulsion forces and define this new phenomenon as single-electrode electrostatic repulsion phenomenon. We investigate the fundamental electrostatic phenomena, giving a curve of electrostatic force versus voltage and then defining 3 regions. Remote actuation and manipulation are essential technologies that are of enormous concern, with tweezers playing an important role. Various tweezers designed on the basis of external fields of optics, acoustics, and magnetism can be used for remote actuation and manipulation, but some inherent drawbacks still exist. Tweezers would benefit greatly from our discovery in electrostatics. On the basis of this discovery, we propose the concept of electrostatic tweezers, which can achieve noncontact and remote actuation and manipulation. Experimental characterizations and successful applications in metamaterials, robots, and manipulating objects demonstrated that electrostatic tweezers can produce large deformation rates (>6,000%), fast actuation (>100 Hz), and remote manipulating distance (~15 cm) and have the advantages of simple device structure, easy control, lightweight, no dielectric breakdown, and low cost. Our work may deepen people's understanding of single-electrode electrostatics and opens new opportunities for remote actuation and manipulation.

Powerful UAV manipulation via bioinspired self-adaptive soft self-contained gripper.

Existing grippers for unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) manipulation have persistent challenges, highlighting a need for grippers that are soft, self-adaptive, self-contained, easy to control, and lightweight. Inspired by tendril plants, we propose a class of soft grippers that are voltage driven and based on winding deformation for self-adaptive grasping. We design two types of U-shaped soft eccentric circular tube actuators (UCTAs) and propose using the liquid-gas phase-transition mechanism to actuate UCTAs. Two types of UCTAs are separately cross-arranged to construct two types of soft grippers, forming self-contained systems that can be directly driven by voltage. One gripper inspired by tendril climbers can be used for delicate grasping, and the other gripper inspired by hook climbers can be used for strong grasping. These grippers are ideal for deployment in UAVs because of their self-adaptability, ease of control, and light weight, paving the way for UAVs to achieve powerful manipulation with low positioning accuracy, no complex grasping planning, self-adaptability, and multiple environments.

Self-protection soft fluidic robots with rapid large-area self-healing capabilities.

Soft fluidic robots have attracted a lot of attention and have broad application prospects. However, poor fluidic power source and easy to damage have been hindering their development, while the lack of intelligent self-protection also brings inconvenience to their applications. Here, we design diversified self-protection soft fluidic robots that integrate soft electrohydrodynamic pumps, actuators, healing electrofluids, and E-skins. We develop high-performance soft electrohydrodynamic pumps, enabling high-speed actuation and large deformation of untethered soft fluidic robots. A healing electrofluid that can form a self-healed film with excellent stretchability and strong adhesion is synthesized, which can achieve rapid and large-areas-damage self-healing of soft materials. We propose multi-functional E-skins to endow robots intelligence, making robots realize a series of self-protection behaviors. Moreover, our robots allow their functionality to be enhanced by the combination of electrodes or actuators. This design strategy enables soft fluidic robots to achieve their high-speed actuation and intelligent self-protection, opening a door for soft robots with physical intelligence.

Phase-transforming mechanical metamaterials with dynamically controllable shape-locking performance.

Active mechanical metamaterials with customizable structures and deformations, active reversible deformation, dynamically controllable shape-locking performance and stretchability are highly suitable for applications in soft robotics and flexible electronics, yet it is challenging to integrate them due to their mutual conflicts. Here, we introduce a class of phase-transforming mechanical metamaterials (PMMs) that integrate the above properties. Periodically arranging basic actuating units according to the designed pattern configuration and positional relationship, PMMs can customize complex and diverse structures and deformations. Liquid-vapor phase transformation provides active reversible large deformation while a silicone matrix offers stretchability. The contained carbonyl iron powder endows PMMs with dynamically controllable shape-locking performance, thereby achieving magnetically assisted shape locking and energy storing in different working modes. We build a theoretical model and finite element simulation to guide the design process of PMMs, so as to develop a variety of PMMs with different functions suitable for different applications, such as a programmed PMM, reconfigurable antenna, soft lens, soft mechanical memory, biomimetic hand, biomimetic flytrap and self-contained soft gripper. PMMs are applicable to achieve various 2D deformations and 2D-to-3D deformations, and integrate multiple properties, including customizable structures and deformations, active reversible deformation, rapid reversible shape locking, adjustable energy storing and stretchability, which could open a new application avenue in soft robotics and flexible electronics.