Soft Robotics Project Wins Student Prize

Trinity student Codrutza-Maria Dragu has been awarded the Motz Prize for Best Project in Electrical Engineering for the 2023 academic year for her research project in Soft Robotics.

Soft Robotics is an innovative field that focuses on creating robotic and mechanical systems from soft materials. Pneumatic soft robots offer a wide range of motion, an excellent power-to-weight ratio, and low manufacturing costs. Their dexterity and safety makes them suitable for a variety of applications such as soft grippers, locomotion, and biomedical devices. Despite advancements in the field, soft pneumatic actuators continue to face challenges with regards to their sensing and loading performance.

Codrutza’s research focused on the design, build, and test of a robotic soft pneumatic actuator segment of a robot arm. It aimed to improve the sensing and loading performance within the field of soft robotics through the exploration and optimisation of the design for an omni-directional soft pneumatic actuator. The key aspect of this design is that it includes a novel internal spine, as the role of the spine in nature has been shown to increase strength and flexibility. To further investigate how the design performed in a more realistic setting, a dual-body robotic arm was developed from actuators with a spine stiffness that is a compromise between the sensing and loading performance.

Codrutza says of the project: ‘I really enjoyed this research project as it provided me with the invaluable opportunity to explore a previously unfamiliar field. I learned a lot about Soft Robotics and was able to able to apply a wide range of skills and knowledge such as electronics, control, machine learning, material science, and non-linear mechanical modelling. Furthermore, I was welcomed by the amazing Soft Robotics Lab group who were both friendly and helpful throughout my research journey.’