Bionic computing advances flexible robot control

Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Apr 26, 2024 - Kyoto University researchers, in collaboration with the University of Tokyo and Bridgestone Corporation, have developed a method to control pneumatic artificial muscles used in soft robotic actuators. The team leverages the rich dynamics of these components as a computational resource, enhancing robot flexibility and adaptability in disaster scenarios.

"We've demonstrated the actuator's capability to autonomously generate diverse dynamics, including rhythmic patterns and chaos," explains Nozomi Akashi of KyotoU's Graduate School of Informatics. Traditionally, oscillators attached externally to robots facilitated locomotion and repetitive motions, but to maintain the robots' softness, these devices had to be detached.

Akashi's team has tackled this challenge by embedding pattern-changing bifurcation structures directly into the robotic actuators, allowing robots to exhibit qualitatively different patterns beyond their programmed learning data.

"In addition, the pattern-changing bifurcation structures can be embedded into the robotic actuator itself," says Kohei Nakajima of the University of Tokyo's Graduate School of Information Science and Technology.

This innovation could significantly streamline both hardware and software development processes for robotics, making them more efficient and effective in varied and dynamic environments.

Research Report:Embedding bifurcations into pneumatic artificial muscle