Living robots represent a new frontier in engineering materials for robotic systems, incorporating biological living cells and synthetic materials into their design. These biohybrid robots are dynamic and intelligent, potentially harnessing living matter’s capabilities, such as growth, regeneration, morphing, biodegradation, and environmental adaptation. Such attributes position biohybrid devices as a transformative force in robotics development, promising enhanced dexterity, adaptive behaviours, sustainable production, robust performance, and environmental stewardship. Nature’s musculoskeletal design can act as an inspiration for both artificial and living robots.

In this seminar, Prof Robert Katzschmann, will explore recent advances in artificial electrohydraulic musculoskeletal robots, which employ electrohydraulic actuators to produce lifelike muscle contractions and adaptive motions, as demonstrated in his recent work published in Nature Communications. He will also discuss his advances in vision-controlled inkjet printing for robotics from his Nature paper, as well as xolographic biofabrication techniques for biohybrid swimmers presented at RoboSoft. He will also share insights from his computational optimization of musculoskeletal robotic hands featured at Humanoids.

Together, these projects showcase some initial steps towards a future where musculoskeletal robots, biohybrid designs, and co-optimization techniques are opening new frontiers in robotics interaction and manipulation.

This event will be followed by networking and nibbles at the London Institute for Healthcare Engineering.