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Engineering

Designing Soft Robots That Squeeze Through Tight Spaces

Quick fact

Soft robots made of silicone rubber can squeeze through openings only 10% of their normal cross-sectional area by using pneumatic pressure to drastically change their shape—a capability no rigid robot can match.

Why this is interesting

Imagine a robot that can flatten itself like a pancake to crawl under a door, then reinflate and keep moving. How do engineers make a machine that squeezes through gaps smaller than its own body?