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MECH_ENG 495: Topics in Soft Robotics

Description

The field of soft robotics has expanded rapidly in the past five years. This course will survey the field, covering topics from pneumatic actuators (“McKibben muscles”), to jamming grippers, to novel sensors and actuators. Two recurring themes throughout the course will be the extent to which biological systems can inspire successful robots, and the degree to which robots can help answer questions about biological systems. The first part of the course will present an overview of the field and identify several possible student projects for the quarter. Some examples of possible projects can be found at http://softroboticstoolkit.com/projects. The second part of the course will be based on student-led discussions of the primary literature and student-led demonstrations of some soft-robot technologies.

This course will be taught every other year in the spring.