Robot Tentacle is Soft Enough to Cradle a Flower

The newly evolved monkey flower. (Image credit: Mario Vallejo-Marin)

With their hard, mechanical grippers, robots follow the "awkward monster" trope of movies and literature — you know, where the monster is so big and strong, its casual grip shatters teacups and other delicate items. Now researchers have tried to solve the problem by creating an inflatable robotic tentacle with a touch gentle enough to cradle a flower. The New Scientist has photos and a short video.

The tentacle is a tube made of flexible plastic, the New Scientist reported. Machinery pumps air into three channels in the tube. By pumping different amounts of air into the channels, the soft robo-limb is able to bend in different directions.

Source: New Scientist

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