A novel hydrogel-based connection mechanism for soft modular robots

Connection mechanisms are crucial in reconfigurable robots. In this work, we present a novel approach, based on the self-healing property of a hydrogel synthesized by our group, which allows us to easily attach and detach robotic modules using water as the only trigger element. Our connection mechanism does not need external energy to work and it is reversible and soft, being useful for soft modular robots. Tensile, fatigue and adhesion tests are presented to demonstrate the mechanical performance of our mechanism. Two modular soft robots, manipulator and snake, are featured to show the functionality of our approach.