Roboticist studies octopus flexibility for rescue robot design
Researchers are examining octopuses' ability to squeeze through narrow openings to inspire more adaptable search-and-rescue robots.
Roboticist Wenci Xin of the National University of Singapore is investigating octopuses' capacity to navigate extremely tight spaces as a model for next-generation rescue robots. Current rescue robots are often long and narrow, limiting their ability to move through unpredictable debris. Xin aims to develop robots that are soft and flexible, mimicking the octopus' contortionist abilities, to improve access in collapsed structures and other confined environments.
Octopuses are known for their intelligence and dexterity, traits that make them challenging to contain in aquarium and laboratory settings. Their natural skill at compressing their bodies to fit through minute openings has attracted scientific interest for potential engineering applications.