In a marriage of ancient papercraft and cutting-edge materials science, engineers have created a remarkable new soft robot that can twist and crawl through mazes with ease. The modular, cylindrical design takes inspiration from origami to allow the flexible bot to bend, extend, separate into multiple units, and even reassemble itself while navigating complex spaces.

The innovative robot, described in a paper published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, overcomes a major challenge with conventional soft robots - the need for rigid components used for steering and control that reduce flexibility. By building the steering mechanism directly into the morphing robot body itself, the Princeton and NC State research team has produced a truly modular system that can adapt its form and function on the fly.

"The concept of modular soft robots can provide insight into future systems that can grow, repair themselves, and develop new capabilities as needed," wrote the authors, led by Princeton postdoctoral researcher Tuo Zhao. “Each cylindrical segment can operate independently or join together, all contributing to movement and steering.”

At the heart of the design is a specialized origami pattern called the Kresling cylinder that allows each segment to flatten into a disc shape or re-expand into a tubular form. Introducing precise bending along the creases of this pattern enables the robot to crawl forward, reverse, make turns, and even pick up and transport objects.

Controlling those bending motions required innovation from the NC State researchers. They developed a bi-layer material made of liquid crystal elastomer and polyimide that shrinks and expands at different rates when heated. By sandwiching thin strips of this smart material along the origami creases and running current through an embedded stretchable silver nanowire heater, they could induce localized folding and unfolding.

"We achieved localized, sharp folding to actuate the origami pattern," explained NC State postdoc Shuang Wu. “This effective method can enable a wide range of origami-based soft robotics.”

Princeton's Glaucio Paulino, an expert applying origami principles to diverse engineering fields, called the work “a very promising technology with potential translation to robots that can grow, heal and adapt on demand.”

While still limited in speed compared to rigid robots, the soft origami design opens up radical possibilities. The bots could separate into swarms, then reassemble into extended chains to squeeze through tight spaces. Damaged segments could potentially be replaced or repaired on the fly. The researchers are already exploring new patterns and materials to further improve maneuverability.

From minimally invasive surgical assists to remote planetary exploration, this unique melding of ancient art and modern technology could help shape a more adaptable, resilient and versatile future of soft, modular, self-reconfiguring robotics. The first step? Learning how to fold new paths.