Novel Anisotropic-Friction Skin for Soft Biomimetic Robotic Snake for Rubble Sar

Overview

In the first 6 hours following a building collapse, the chance of finding a survivor is approximately 60%, but drops to less than 10% by the 48th. This research developed a soft biomimetic robotic snake to create a cost-effective device capable of delivering nutritional aid and facilitating victim-rescuer communication for survivors trapped in rubble until their extraction. To do this, emphasis was placed on the anisotropic friction of natural snakes’ ventral skin that facilitates their limbless locomotion. Four novel designs for an artificial anisotropically frictional skin were fabricated and tested on a concrete, carpet, and hardwood surface. These designs were compared to a previous kirigami-inspired design. The best design had a coefficient of static friction delta of 0.359 (backward - forward), a significant improvement over the control with p<0.00001. This design created anisotropic friction using ball bearings embedded within a deformable silicon skin with scales designed to generate greater friction when the skin is unstretched inserted into it. This design was refined due to constraints introduced by an initial full-system prototype, to embed ball bearings in the scale surface, making them disengage from surface contact upon skin contraction. A prototype of the robot was created using the cable-actuation of an omnidirectional-motion-capable origami structure. The prototype was programmed to replicate the sine-wave motion of a lateral undulation gait. A fully operational robot is calculated to cost $3,600, making it more feasible for the local search operations conducted in the immediate aftermath of a disaster.