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Research Article

Piezoelectric soft robot driven by mechanical energy

Jiangfeng Lu1,§, Zicong Miao2,§, Zihan Wang1,§, Ying Liu1, Dekuan Zhu2, Jihong Yin1, Fei Tang3, Xiaohao Wang1,2( ), Wenbo Ding1( ), Min Zhang2( )
Tsinghua-Berkeley Shenzhen Institute, Tsinghua University, Shenzhen 518055, China
Shenzhen International Graduate School, Tsinghua University, Shenzhen 518055, China
State Key Laboratory of Precision Measurement Technology and Instruments, Department of Precision Instruments, Tsinghua University, Beijing100084, China

§ Jiangfeng Lu, Zicong Miao, and Zihan Wang contributed equally to this work.

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Graphical Abstract

In this work, for the first time, we reported a triboelectric effect-driven piezoelectric soft robot (TEPSR) system, further expanding the applicability of triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs) as well as providing energy-harvesting schemes for piezoelectric soft robots.

Abstract

Power sources and energy-harvesting schemes are still grand challenges for soft robots. Notably, compared with other power sources, triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs) have shown great potential because of their low manufacturing and fabrication costs, outstanding resilience, remarkable stability, and environmental friendliness. Herein, a triboelectric effect-driven piezoelectric soft robot (TEPSR) system is proposed, which integrates a rotary freestanding triboelectric nanogenerator (RF-TENG) to drive a soft robot comprising a piezoelectric unimorph and electrostatic footpads. Based on the natural triboelectrification, through converting mechanical energy into electricity, TENG provides a unique approach for actuation and manipulation of the soft robot. The perfect combination provides the most straightforward way for creating a self-powered system. Experimentally, under the power of RF-TENG, the soft robot reaches a maximum moving speed of 10 cm per second and a turning rate of 89.7° per second, respectively. The actuation and manipulation demonstration are intuitively accomplished by maneuvering the robot around a maze with a 71 cm track within 28 s. For autonomous feedback controls, one practical application is carrying two infrared sensors on board to realize obstacle avoidance in an unstructured environment. Moreover, a micro-camera was equipped with the soft robot to provide real-time “first-person” video streaming, enhancing its detection capability.

Keywords

triboelectric nanogeneratorpiezoelectric soft robotrapid actuationagile trajectory manipulationenergy efficiency

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Nano Research
Volume 16 Issue 4,
April 2023
Pages 4970-4979
DOI: 10.1007/s12274-022-5180-y
Cite this article:
Lu J, Miao Z, Wang Z, et al. Piezoelectric soft robot driven by mechanical energy. Nano Research, 2023, 16(4): 4970-4979. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12274-022-5180-y
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Received: 07 September 2022
Revised: 01 October 2022
Accepted: 10 October 2022
Published: 15 December 2022
© Tsinghua University Press 2022
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