Robotics Biohybrid Robots Turn Food Waste Into Functional Machines

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Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL)

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In our "Fascination with Technology" section, we present engineers with impressive projects from research and development every week. Today: how EPFL researchers integrate discarded exoskeletons of crustaceans into robotic systems.

Although many robotics engineers today use nature as a source of inspiration, even bio-inspired robots are usually made from non-biological materials such as metal, plastic, and composites. However, a new experimental robotic manipulator from the Computational Robot Design and Fabrication Lab (CREATE Lab) at the School of Engineering at EPFL turns this trend on its head: its central feature is a pair of exoskeletons from the abdomens of langoustines.

As unusual as it may seem, Create-Lab director Josie Hughes explains that the combination of biological elements with synthetic components holds great potential—not only for advancing robotics but also for supporting sustainable technology systems.

"Exoskeletons combine mineralized shells with joint membranes, providing a balance of rigidity and flexibility that allows their segments to move independently. These properties enable crustaceans to perform rapid movements with high torque in water, but they can also be very useful in robotics. And by repurposing food waste, we propose a sustainable, circular design process in which materials are recycled and adapted for new purposes."

In a paper published in Advanced Science, Hughes and her team demonstrate three robotic applications by reinforcing and extending exoskeletons from langoustine abdomens with synthetic components: a manipulator capable of handling objects up to 1.1 lb, grippers that can bend and grasp various items, and a swimming robot.

Design, Operate, Recycle, Repeat

For their study, the Create Lab combined the structural robustness and flexibility of langoustine exoskeletons with the precise controllability and durability of synthetic components. To achieve this, an elastomer was embedded into the exoskeleton to actuate each of its segments, and it was then mounted on a motorized base to modulate its stiffness response (extension and flexion). Finally, the team coated the exoskeleton with a silicone layer to reinforce it and extend its lifespan.

Mounted on the motorized base, the device can move an object weighing up to 1.1 lb into a target zone. When mounted as a gripper pair, two exoskeletons can successfully grasp a variety of objects of different sizes and shapes—from a highlighter to a tomato. The robotic system can even propel a swimming robot with two beating exoskeletal "fins" at speeds of up to 4.3 inches per second.

After use, the exoskeleton and its robotic base can be separated, and most synthetic components can be reused. "To the best of our knowledge, we are the first to provide proof of concept for integrating food waste into a robotic system that combines sustainable design with reuse and recycling," says Create Lab researcher and lead author Sareum Kim.

Even if nature does not necessarily provide the optimal form, it still surpasses many artificial systems and offers valuable insights for designing functional machines based on elegant principles.

Josie Hughes

A limitation of the approach lies in the natural variation of biological structures; for instance, the unique shape of each langoustine tail causes the two-fingered gripper to bend slightly differently on each side. According to the researchers, this challenge will require the development of more advanced synthetic extension mechanisms, such as tunable actuators. With such improvements, the team sees potential for future systems that integrate bio-derived structural elements—for example, in biomedical implants or platforms for monitoring biosystems.

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