Introduction

Gears, motors, and electromechanical actuators are ubiquitous in existing robotic platforms. However, new materials that combine sensing, actuation and computation are challenging the physical limitations of traditional mechatronic systems and offer a range of opportunities for the design of new robots, especially with design principles inspired from nature. The development of multi-material 3D printing further facilitates the fabrication of structures with smart, composite materials that can evolve or react to external stimuli in a pre-programmed manner. The intrinsic nonlinearities of these structures can be leveraged to perform complex motion that is difficult to achieve by conventional means and are suitable for systems that require small active elements, biocompatibility and, in some cases, self-healing capabilities. The main research goal of the Centre is to explore new materials and fabrication schemes for robotics, addressing allied energy harvesting, sensing, structural design, assembly and system integration issues. The Centre is to focus on developing radically new design approaches and novel materials that are multi-functional, power-efficient, compliant, and biointegrable for applications in surgery, rehabilitation, drug delivery, and implants.

Research Interests

• Multi-phase composites and metamaterials for robotics
• Self-powered materials with integrated sensing
• Active and shape memory materials
• Intelligent, self-healing and learning materials
• Bioinspired smart fibres and fibrebots
• Composite materials with embedded actuation, sensing, communication and computation