soft machines

Time-lapse photo series of a hydrogel with fuel added (middle row) compared with a control hydrogel to which nothing has been added (top row), over a three-week period (504 hours). The bottom row shows a hydrogel that changes shape independently when two different types of fuel are added. Credit: TU Delft

Synthetic life? Using a chemical fuel to drive interactions in non-living materials

Next-generation soft materials with embedded chemical networks that mimic the behavior of neural tissue

Liquid computing comes to life with fluidic transistors

Purdue researchers have developed a technique to embed a liquid-alloy pattern inside a rubber-like polymer to form a network of sensors. The approach might be used to produce "soft machines" made of elastic materials and liquid metals for potential applications in robotics, medical devices and consumer electronics. (Rebecca Kramer/Purdue University)

New manufacturing methods needed for ‘soft’ machines, robots

A Big Step on the Road to Soft Machines