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Video/AnimationReimagining Robots to be Smaller, Softer, and SaferWyss Associate Faculty members, Conor Walsh and Rob Wood, discuss their visions for the future of bio-inspired soft robotics. Credit: Wyss Institute at Harvard University -
Video/AnimationSoft Robots Aiding the Elderly and People with Physical ImpairmentsAn interdisciplinary team at Harvard University School of Engineering and the Wyss Institute at Harvard University is building soft robots for older adults and people with physical impairments. Examples of these robots are the Assistive Hip Suit and Soft Robotic Glove, both of which have been included in the 2021-2022 Smithsonian Institution exhibit entitled “FUTURES.”... -
Audio/PodcastSoft Robotics With Robert WoodThe IEEE Soft Robotics podcast hosted by Marwa ElDiwiny is dedicated to the (soft) robotics community and the audience who is interested in (soft)robotics technology. They interview guests from both academia and industry and discuss their latest research, highlighting the challenges that face robotics in the academic and industrial worlds. Wyss Associate Faculty Member Robert... -
Video/AnimationA Laser Steering Device for Robot-Assisted SurgeryResponding to an unmet need for a robotic surgical device that is flexible enough to access hard to reach areas of the G.I. tract while causing minimal peripheral tissue damage, Researchers at the Wyss Institute and Harvard SEAS have developed a laser steering device that has the potential to improve surgical outcomes for patients. Credit:... -
Video/AnimationStudying Pyrosome BioluminescencePyrosomes are one of the few organisms known to exhibit bioluminescence in response to light. They are also very delicate, which makes them difficult to study. Scientists from the Wyss Institute have collaborated with marine biologists to create a soft robot that delicately handles pyrosomes so that they can be studied safely. Recently, the robot... -
Video/AnimationOrigami Miniature Surgical ManipulatorResearchers from the Wyss Institute, Harvard SEAS, and Sony have created the mini-RCM, a small surgical robot that can help surgeons perform delicate teleoperated procedures on the human body. Credit: Wyss Institute at Harvard University -
Video/AnimationSmart Thermally Actuating TextilesSmart Thermally Actuating Textiles (STATs) are tightly-sealed pouches that are able to change shape or maintain their pressure even in environments in which the exterior temperature or airflow fluctuates. This soft robotics technology could be developed as novel components of rehabilitation therapies or to prevent tissue damage in hospital bed or wheelchair-bound individuals. Credit: Wyss... -
Video/AnimationLow-cost Tactile Displays for the Blind and Visually ImpairedElectrical Engineer, Michael Karpelson, presents a Wyss Institute Validation Project that is developing a simple and inexpensive tactile display technology for the blind and visually impaired, that has almost no learning curve and can augment alphanumerical displays in existing devices. Credit: Wyss Institute at Harvard University -
Video/AnimationThe Human Mind and Gait ControlResearchers study how our brains adjust to changes in our walking strides, gaining insights that could be used to develop better physical rehabilitation programs. Credit: Wyss Institute -
Video/AnimationSoft Robotic Gripper for Jellyfish 2.0Scientists from the Wyss Institute at Harvard University and CUNY have created ultra-soft robotic grippers that resemble fettuccini noodles to safely catch and release delicate underwater creatures like jellyfish without harm. Credit: Wyss Institute at Harvard University -
Video/AnimationInterrogator: Human Organ-on-ChipsThis video describes the “Interrogator” instrument that can be programmed to culture up to 10 different Organ Chips and sequentially transfer fluids between their vascular channels to mimic normal human blood flow between the different organs of our body. Its integrated microscope enables the continuous monitoring of the tissues’ integrities in the individual organ chips... -
Video/AnimationSoft Robotic Gripper for JellyfishIn order to study jellyfish and other fragile marine life without damaging them, researchers at the Wyss Institute and Baruch College developed an ultra-soft gripper to gently grasp jellyfish and release them without harm. Credit: Wyss Institute at Harvard University -
Audio/PodcastThese Experimental Shorts Are An ‘Exosuit’ That Boosts Endurance On The TrailThese Experimental Shorts Are An ‘Exosuit’ That Boosts Endurance On The Trail was originally broadcast on NPR’s All Things Considered on August 15, 2019. This story features Wyss Institute Core Faculty member Conor Walsh, Ph.D. The original broadcast story can be found here. -
Video/AnimationHip-only Soft Exosuit for both Walking and RunningThis video demonstrates the use of the hip-assisting exosuit in different natural environments, and shows how the robotic device senses changes in the gait-specific vertical movements of the center of mass during walking and running to rapidly adjust its actuation. Credit: Wyss Institute at Harvard University -
Video/AnimationTension PistonsThe Tension Piston, developed at the Wyss Institute and MIT CSAIL, amplifies piston force and increases energy efficiency by using flexible materials to transmit fluid-induced tension. The Tension Piston is able to produce substantially greater force compared to a conventional piston at the same driving pressure. Tension Pistons can be used in pumps, engines, compressors,... -
Video/AnimationRomu: A Robot for Environmental ProtectionResearchers at the Wyss Institute have developed a robot designed to drive interlocking sheet piles into the ground to help stabilize soil. Teams of such robots could help combat erosion, restore damaged landscapes, and facilitate sustainable land management in a variety of settings. Credit: Wyss Institute at Harvard -
Video/AnimationBill Meets BotsIn April 2018, Bill Gates visited several Harvard University robotics labs, including two of Wyss Institute Core Faculty members Rob Wood and Conor Walsh. While visiting Wood’s Harvard Microrobotics he learned about the RoboBee and soft grippers for deep sea exploration, and in the Walsh’s Harvard Biodesign Lab he learned about the soft wearable exosuit... -
Video/AnimationHAMR-E: Inverted and Vertical Climbing MicrorobotHAMR-E, created in collaboration with Rolls-Royce, is a micro-robot that uses electroadhesion to scale vertical, inverted, and curved surfaces, allowing it to explore spaces that are too small for humans. HAMR-E could one day be used to inspect jet engines and other complicated machines without requiring them to be taken apart. Credit: Wyss Institute at... -
Video/AnimationRobert Wood receives Max Planck-Humboldt MedalThis photomatic portrays Robert Wood and his team innovating (soft) robotics research with new approaches. Credit: Max Planck Society
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Video/AnimationScience Nation: Engineering soft robots for paradigm shift in rehabilitationThis video was produced by the National Science Foundation: Tim Gatautis suffered a spinal cord injury in a swimming accident nearly a decade ago and he’s had to use a wheelchair ever since. Gatautis would like to be able to do more for himself, which brings him to the Wyss Institute and the Biodesign Lab... -
Video/AnimationSoft Robotic Arms: Giving Biologists a Delicate, Deep-sea ReachWhat good is a soft robotic hand without a soft robotic arm to move it? Wyss researchers have now created a soft, modular underwater arm that can help marine biologists study hard-to-reach organisms in the deep sea. Credit: Wyss Institute at Harvard University -
Audio/PodcastDisruptive: Soft Robotics for Deep Sea ExplorationThe deep ocean is the least explored environment on Earth, and scientists estimate that many thousands of species are yet to be encountered. Marine researchers depend on tools primarily developed for the military or the oil and gas industry to study and capture undersea organisms. Many of them are extremely fragile, some thousands of years... -
Video/AnimationMulti-joint Personalized Soft Exosuit Breaks New GroundA multidisciplinary team at Harvard’s Wyss Institute and Harvard SEAS has developed a mobile multi-joint soft exosuit using an automatic tuning strategy that could reduce fatigue in soldiers, firefighters or other rescue workers. Credit: Wyss Institute at Harvard University -
Video/AnimationNanofiber-Reinforced Micro-ActuatorsThis video explains how two fabrication techniques, soft lithography and rotary jet spinning of nanofibers, are combined to create a new type of micro-actuator for the manipulation of small fragile objects in challenging environments. Credit: Wyss Institute at Harvard University -
Video/AnimationRolls-Royce and SWARM RobotsTiny SWARM robots are part of Rolls-Royce’s IntelligentEngine vision, and could one day revolutionize the way they maintain jet engines. Listen to the Wyss Institute’s Sebastien de Rivas explain the technology behind them. -
Video/AnimationMORPH: A new soft material microfabrication processWhat has the ability to move and show its colors, is made only of silicone rubber and manufactured at the millimeter scale? A soft robotic peacock spider. Researchers have combined three different manufacturing techniques to create a novel origami-inspired soft material microfabrication process that goes beyond what existing approaches can achieve at this small scale.... -
Video/Animation3D-Printed Soft GrippersWhat’s the easiest way to pick up soft-bodied sea creatures? 3D-printed soft robots. Watch as an interdisciplinary team of marine biologists, engineers, and roboticists create custom-made soft grippers on-board the Schmidt Ocean Institute’s R/V Falkor, allowing them to safely sample many types of delicate sea life in the Phoenix Islands Protected Area (PIPA). Credit: Wyss Institute... -
Video/AnimationRAD Sampler: Device for investigating delicate marine organismsLike an underwater pokéball, this origami-inspired sampling device folds up into a container for capturing delicate marine organisms. Credit: Wyss Institute at Harvard University -
Video/AnimationHAMR: Robotic Cockroach for Underwater ExplorationsThis video shows how the HAMR can transition from land to water, paddle on the surface of water, or sink to the ground to start walking again just as it would on dry land. Credit: Yufeng Chen, Neel Doshi, and Benjamin Goldberg/Harvard University -
Le Lab Presents: The Mechanical Side of Artificial Intelligence with Rob WoodWyss Core Faculty member Robert Wood, Ph.D. presented a talk at Le Laboratoire Cambridge on May 16th 2018 titled The Mechanical Side of Artificial Intelligence. Artificial intelligence typically focuses on perception, learning, and control methods to enable autonomous robots to make and act on decisions in real environments. Wood’s research focuses on the design, mechanics,... -
Video/AnimationHumans of the Wyss – Faculty Edition with Katia BertoldiOur new interview series, “Humans of the Wyss – Faculty Edition,” features Wyss Institute faculty members discussing how they think about their work, the influences that help shape them as scientists, and their collaborations at the Wyss Institute and beyond. In the first edition of the series, Lindsay Brownell, Wyss Institute Communications team member, talks... -
Video/AnimationSoft Exosuit: Human-in-the-Loop Bayesian OptimizationResearchers from the Wyss Institute and Harvard SEAS have developed a human-in-the-loop Bayesian optimization method to personalize the hip assistance that a soft exosuit can provide. The optimized assistance helps reduce metabolic cost compared to walking without the device, or with the device not further personalized. Credit: Harvard Biodesign Lab/Harvard Agile Robotics Lab Learn more... -
Video/Animation3D Printing: Soft Robots with Embedded SensorsResearchers from the Wyss Institute and Harvard SEAS have developed a platform for 3D printed, soft robots with embedded sensors that can feel touch, pressure, motion and temperature. This technology could be used for integrated sensing across a range of soft robotic applications. Credit: Harvard SEAS -
Video/AnimationKirigami CrawlerResearchers at the Wyss Institute and Harvard SEAS have built a robot inspired by snakes that uses kirigami cuts in its ‘skin’ to grip the ground when it is inflated. Credit: Harvard SEAS -
Video/AnimationMeet HAMR, the Cockroach-Inspired RobotThe Harvard Ambulatory Microrobot - nicknamed HAMR - is a versatile robot that can run at high speeds, jump, climb, turn sharply, carry payloads and fall from great distances without being injured. -
Video/AnimationThe milliDelta RobotDelta Robots are comprised of three articulating arms connected to an output stage. They are extremely precise and agile, and can be used for “pick & place” and 3D Printing. Researchers at the Wyss Institute and Harvard SEAS have developed a millimeter-scale delta robot, the “milliDelta.” Possible applications at this scale include microassembly, micromanipulation, and... -
Video/AnimationOrigami-Inspired Artificial MusclesArtificial muscles could make soft robots safer and stronger. Researchers at the Wyss Institute, Harvard SEAS, and MIT CSAIL have developed a novel design approach for origami-inspired artificial muscles, capable of lifting 1000x its own weight. The muscles are made of a compressible skeleton and air or fluid medium encased in a flexible skin, and... -
Video/AnimationAerial-Aquatic MicrorobotInspired by insects, researchers at the Wyss Institute and Harvard SEAS have developed a robot capable of flying…and swimming. Once the robot swims to the surface of the water, surrounding water is collected in a buoyancy chamber. Within the chamber, an electrolytic plate produced oxyhydrogen. This gives the robot extra buoyancy, which enables it to... -
Video/AnimationAuto-cyclic Proximity RecordingThis video explains how “Auto-cycling Proximity Recording” works to identify pairs of nearby molecular targets and how it can be used as a tool to decipher the geometry of 3-dimensional engineered and natural molecules. Credit: Wyss Institute at Harvard University -
Video/AnimationBattery-Free Folding RobotsWireless, battery-free folding robots are powered by electromagnetic fields, enabling them to move without bulky batteries. Credit: Wyss Institute at Harvard University -
Video/AnimationSoft Exosuit for Post-stroke Gait Re-trainingThis video explains how exosuit technology, developed at the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering, applied to ankle movements helps patients post-stroke regain a more normal gait. Credit: Wyss Institute at Harvard University -
Video/AnimationTED: What intelligent machines can learn from a school of fishScience fiction visions of the future show us AI built to replicate our way of thinking — but what if we modeled it instead on the other kinds of intelligence found in nature? Robotics engineer Radhika Nagpal studies the collective intelligence displayed by insects and fish schools, seeking to understand their rules of engagement. In... -
Video/AnimationSoft Robotic Heart Sleeve: In VitroReplicating heart pressure and contraction in vitro, the soft robotic heart sleeve with actuators arranged around a fluid-filled sac is able to rhythmically contract to each time pump a defined fluid volume into the attached tubing. Credit: Harvard SEAS -
Audio/PodcastDisruptive: Mechanotherapeutics – From Drugs to WearablesMechanobiology reveals insights into how the body’s physical forces and mechanics impact development, physiological health, and prevention and treatment of disease. The emerging field of Mechanotherapeutics leverages these insights towards the development of new types of pharmaceuticals, drug delivery systems, engineered tissues, and wearable therapeutic devices that leverage physical forces or target mechanical signaling pathways... -
Video/AnimationRoot: Meets Students At Any LevelThis video demonstrates how Root can be used in classrooms to help instill coding and programming skills in students at any level. Developed by a team of researchers led by Wyss Core Faculty member Radhika Nagpal, the Root system is designed to be as intuitive and approachable as any tablet app, providing a framework easy... -
Video/AnimationMechanotherapeutics: From Drugs to WearablesThe Wyss Institute’s 7th annual international symposium focused on advances in the field of Mechanobiology that have resulted in the development of new types of pharmaceuticals, drug delivery systems, engineered tissues, and wearable therapeutic devices that leverage physical forces or target mechanical signaling pathways as a core part of their mechanism of action. Organized by... -
Video/AnimationOctobot: A Soft, Autonomous RobotThe Octobot is the first entirely soft, autonomous robot. It is made by a combination of embedded 3D printing, modeling, and soft lithography. Inspired by real octopuses, the Octobot has no rigid components. It is powered by a chemical reaction and controlled with a microfluidic logic that directs the flow of fuel. The logic circuit... -
Video/AnimationRobobee: Saving Energy While in the AirThe RoboBee, pioneered at the Harvard Microrobotics Lab, uses an electrode patch and a foam mount that absorbs shock to perch on surfaces and conserve energy in flight. Credit: Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) -
Video/AnimationMeet Root: The Robot that Brings Code to LifeComputational thinking and programming underlie the digital world around us – yet K-16 teachers have been challenged to find the right teaching tool to instill coding and programming skills in beginners of a wide age range. Recognizing the pressing need for young students to be digitally literate and the remarkable educational power of robots, a... -
Video/AnimationSoft Robotic Grippers For Deep-Sea ExplorationIn this video, two types of soft robotic grippers are shown successfully collecting coral samples at the bottom of the Red Sea. The first gripper features opposing pairs of bending actuators, while the second gripper – inspired by the coiling action of a boa constrictor – can access tight spaces and clutch small and irregular... -
Video/AnimationRoboBee: From Aerial to AquaticThe RoboBee is a miniature robot that has long been able to fly. But what if the RoboBee lands in water? Using a modified flapping technique, researchers at the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences and the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard University have demonstrated that the RoboBee... -
Audio/PodcastDisruptive: Bioinspired Robotics (pt. 1)Our bodies—and all living systems—accomplish tasks far more complex and dynamic than anything yet designed by humans. Many of the most advanced robots in use today are still far less sophisticated than ants that “self–organize” to build an ant hill, or termites that work together to build impressive, massive mounds in Africa. From insects in... -
Audio/PodcastDisruptive: Bioinspired Robotics (pt. 3)Our bodies—and all living systems—accomplish tasks far more complex and dynamic than anything yet designed by humans. Many of the most advanced robots in use today are still far less sophisticated than ants that “self–organize” to build an ant hill, or termites that work together to build impressive, massive mounds in Africa. From insects in...
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Audio/PodcastDisruptive: Bioinspired Robotics (pt. 2)Our bodies—and all living systems—accomplish tasks far more complex and dynamic than anything yet designed by humans. Many of the most advanced robots in use today are still far less sophisticated than ants that “self–organize” to build an ant hill, or termites that work together to build impressive, massive mounds in Africa. From insects in...
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Video/AnimationJumping on Water: Robotic Water StriderIn this video, watch how novel robotic insects developed by a team of Seoul National University and Harvard scientists can jump directly off water’s surface. The robots emulate the natural locomotion of water strider insects, which skim on and jump off the surface of water. Credit: Wyss Institute at Harvard University -
Video/Animation3D Printed Soft Jumping RobotUsing a multi-material 3D printer for manufacturing allowed Wyss Institute researchers to fabricate the jumping robot in one uninterrupted job, seamlessly transitioning from rigid core components to a soft exterior in a single print session. It’s first ever robot to be 3D printed with layers of material gradients, making it extremely durable and giving the... -
Video/AnimationBioinspired Robotics: Softer, Smarter, SaferThe Bioinspired Robotics platform at HarvardÍs Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering looks into Nature to obtain insights for the development of new robotic components that are smarter, softer, and safer than conventional industrial robots. By looking at natural intelligence, collective behavior, biomechanics, and material properties not found in manmade systems, scientists at the Wyss...
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Video/AnimationPopup Challenge: Help Revolutionize Popup RoboticsJoin the Wyss Institute Popup Challenge, a design contest based around the laminate design techniques outlined at popupcad.org. We hope to grow the community of people who can design, build, and operate laminate devices and micromechanisms. If you are a student considering using popups for a class project, a researcher who has an application for... -
Video/AnimationMeet Metamorpho: A Robot Simulating Biological TransformationMetamorpho is a robotic platform designed for emulating the developmental induction of locomotor patterns across all animals. This video shows a robotic system with a transforming body morphology that simulates the biological transformation of a tadpole to a frog. Like a tadpole, Metamorpho starts to swim with tail alone while legs receive a feedback signal... -
Video/AnimationSoft Robotic GloveThe soft robotic glove under development at the Wyss Institute could one day be an assistive device used for grasping objects, which could help patients suffering from muscular dystrophy, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), incomplete spinal cord injury, or other hand impairments to regain some daily independence and control of their environment. This research is partially... -
Video/AnimationKilobots: A Thousand-Robot SwarmIn this video, Kilobots self-assemble in a thousand-robot swarm. The algorithm developed by Wyss Institute Core Faculty member Radhika Nagpal that enables the swarm provides a valuable platform for testing future collective Artificial Intelligence (AI) algorithms. Credit: Harvard School of Engineering and Applied Sciences. -
Video/AnimationSelf-Folding RobotsIn this video, Wyss Institute Core Faculty member Rob Wood, who is also the Charles River Professor of Engineering and Applied Sciences at Harvard’s School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS), and SEAS Ph.D. student Sam Felton discuss their landmark achievement in robotics – getting a robot to assemble itself and walk away autonomously –... -
Video/AnimationSoft Robotic ExosuitIn this video, Harvard faculty member Conor Walsh and members of his team explain how the biologically inspired Soft Exosuit targets enhancing the mobility of healthy individuals and restoring the mobility of those with physical disabilities. This research is partially funded by the National Science Foundation. Note: This technology is currently in the research and... -
Video/AnimationVirus-inspired DNA NanodevicesWyss Institute Core Faculty member William Shih and Technology Development Fellow Steven Perrault explain why DNA nanodevices need protection inside the body, and how a viral-inspired strategy helps protect them. Credit: Wyss Institute at Harvard University -
Video/AnimationTERMESInspired by termites, the TERMES robots act independently but collectively. They can carry bricks, build staircases, and then climb them to add bricks to a structure. Credit: Wyss Institute at Harvard University -
Video/AnimationTiny 3D-Printed BatteryIn this video, a 3D-printer nozzle narrower than a human hair lays down a specially formulated “ink” layer by layer to build a microbattery’s anode from the ground up. Unlike ink in an office inkjet printer, which comes out as droplets of liquid and wets a piece of paper, these 3D-printer inks are specially formulated... -
Audio/PodcastRobotics Lessons from TermitesJustin Werfel, Wyss Institute Research Scientist, shared his story for The Story Collider in a live storytelling event with the theme ‘The Science I Never Expected’ in June 2013. Justin Werfel received his PhD at MIT and did postdoctoral work at Harvard and the New England Complex Systems Institute. He works on topics including swarm... -
Video/AnimationRoboBee: Controlled flight of a robotic insectInspired by the biology of a fly, with submillimeter-scale anatomy and two wafer-thin wings that flap at 120 times per second, robotic insects, or RoboBees, achieve vertical takeoff, hovering, and steering. The tiny robots flap their wings using piezoelectric actuators — strips of ceramic that expand and contract when an electric field is applied. Thin... -
Video/AnimationTermite-inspired robotsInspired by termites and their building activities, the TERMES project is working toward developing a swarm construction system in which robots cooperate to build 3D structures much larger than themselves. The current system consists of simple but autonomous mobile robots and specialized passive blocks; the robot is able to manipulate blocks to build tall structures,...