For Immediate Release
Engineering researchers from North Carolina State University have demonstrated a new type of flexible, robotic grippers that are able to lift delicate egg yolks without breaking them, and that are precise enough to lift a human hair. The work has applications for both soft robotics and biomedical technologies.
The work draws on the art of kirigami, which involves both cutting and folding two-dimensional (2D) sheets of material to form three-dimensional (3D) shapes. Specifically, the researchers have developed a new technique that involves using kirigami to convert 2D sheets into curved 3D structures by cutting parallel slits across much of the material. The final shape of the 3D structure is determined in large part by the outer boundary of the material. For example, a 2D material that has a circular boundary would form a spherical 3D shape.
“We have defined and demonstrated a model that allows users to work backwards,” says Yaoye Hong, first author of a paper on the work and a Ph.D. student at NC State. “If users know what sort of curved, 3D structure they need, they can use our approach to determine the boundary shape and pattern of slits they need to use in the 2D material. And additional control of the final structure is made possible by controlling the direction in which the material is pushed or pulled.”
“我们的技术比以前的技术转换为弯曲的3D结构，允许设计人员从2D材料中创建各种定制的结构，”纸纸和副教授的副教授Jie Yin说作者：王莹，河北省机械与航空航天工程JOURNAL。
The researchers demonstrated the utility of their technique by creating grippers capable of grabbing and lifting objects ranging from egg yolks to a human hair. Video of the technology can be found athttps://youtu.be/1oexhkboyc8.。
“我们发现我们的侦探hnique can be used to create tools capable of grasping and moving even extremely fragile objects,” Yin says.
“传统的夹子牢固地抓住一个物体 - 他们通过对它们压力抓住东西，”尹说。“在试图抓住脆弱的物体时可能会造成问题，例如蛋黄。但我们的夹子基本上围绕着物体，然后举起它 - 类似于我们围绕物体的手。这使我们能够“抓住”并移动甚至可以致以精确的精度。“
然而，研究人员指出，存在许多其他潜在应用，例如使用该技术设计符合人体膝盖的关节形状的生物医学技术。
“Think of smart bandages or monitoring devices capable of bending and moving with your knee or elbow,” Yin says.
“这是概念验证工作，表明我们的技术有效，”尹说。“我们现在正在将这种技术集成到软机器人技术中以解决产业挑战。我们还探索了如何使用该技术来创建可用于将温暖施加到人膝部的设备，这将具有治疗应用。
“We’re open to working with industry partners to explore additional applications and to find ways to move this approach from the lab into practical use.”
The paper, “Boundary Curvature Guided Programmable Shape-Morphing Kirigami Sheets，“发表在期刊上Nature Communications。本文是由Yong Zhu，Andrew A. Adams卓越的机械和航空航天工程教授在NC州立教授;而通过Yinding Chi，双武，延滨李，所有人都是博士学位。学生在NC州。这项工作是通过国家科学基金会的支持，根据“授权”2005374和2010717。
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Note to Editors:The study abstract follows.
“边界曲率导向可编程形状 - 变形kirigami床单”
Authors: Yaoye Hong, Yinding Chi, Shuang Wu, Yanbin Li, Yong Zhu and Jie Yin, North Carolina State University
Published：1月26日，Nature Communications
Abstract:Kirigami, a traditional paper cutting art, offers a promising strategy for 2D-to-3D shape morphing through cut-guided deformation. Existing kirigami designs for target 3D curved shapes rely on intricate cut patterns in thin sheets, making the inverse design challenging. Motivated by the Gauss-Bonnet theorem that correlates the geodesic curvature along the boundary with the Gaussian curvature, here, we exploit programming the curvature of cut boundaries rather than the complex cut patterns in kirigami sheets for target 3D curved morphologies through both forward and inverse designs. The strategy largely simplifies the inverse design. Leveraging this strategy, we demonstrate its potential applications as a universal and nondestructive gripper for delicate objects, including live fish, raw egg yolk, and a human hair, as well as dynamically conformable heaters for human knees. This study opens a new avenue to encode boundary curvatures for shape-programing materials with potential applications in soft robotics and wearable devices.
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