Objective

The motion produced through the interaction between a soft body robot and the environment is more capable of producing a flexible and adaptive behavior than a rigid body. In order to produce human like movements we focus on considering the interaction with the physical environment combined with an appropriate morphological structure (robot body), instead of adopting a complex control methodology. In this group, considering this interaction between body and environment, locomotion is created, such as walking, running, jumping and forms of body expression, also considering the following topics:

(A) Rough terrain walking using antagonistic driven muscles: The use of antagonistic pneumatic artificial muscles allows the reproduction of ballistic dynamics, exploiting gravity for a low-energy movement, and provides a framework for implementing adaptive walk.
(B) Dynamic behavior: Dynamic behavior, such as jumping and running, can be achieved by using the flexibility and compliance offered by antagonistic pneumatic pairs.
(C) Smooth transition between gait patterns: In a single framework, patterns such as walking and running can be smoothly shifted through parameters change. This way different gait patterns can be achieved in a developmental approach.
(D) At the same time, dealing with human-environment interaction allow us to have a greater insight in topics such as Cognitive Science, human intelligence formation and image/sensorial stimulus association.

To achieve the above, we need to design robots considering pneumatic actuators as power source, mechanical components to withstand cyclical movements and electronic components, also using as support tools measuring and machining equipment.

Finally, with an adaptive, flexible and compliant structure we believe that interaction with human beings could be safer (due to the elasticity of artificial muscles). The role of such robots in society is increasingly important, and insights from this study can also help us understand the physiology of animal body. We receive feedback from society through public demonstrations and laboratory visits, as well as events such as Robocup, raising awareness of their presence in our lives.