A robotic worm with soft skin and inflating and deflating chambers can soon perform search and rescue missions, but it’s going viral thanks to its eye-catching design.
Thanks to plenty of milestones in robotics, humanoid robots have completed half-marathons, performed backflips and kung fu routines, and even run faster than Usain Bolt. Now, researchers have turned to nature for their latest design, creating a robot inspired by the way worms crawl across difficult terrain.
Unfortunately for the team behind it, the robot’s rather unusual shape has completely overshadowed its innocent and potentially life-saving purpose. After footage began circulating online, viewers all came to the same conclusion: it looks remarkably like an adult toy.
Worm-inspired robot could help search collapsed buildings
Researchers at SDU Soft Robotics, part of the University of Southern Denmark, developed the machine under the far less catchy name “Multimodal Limbless Crawling Soft Robot with a Kirigami Skin.”
Inspired by earthworms and other limbless creatures, the robot uses two inflatable soft actuators that work like artificial muscles. By repeatedly inflating and deflating different internal chambers, it can stretch, contract, and move forward without requiring any legs or wheels.
The outside is covered by a flexible kirigami skin, which uses carefully placed cuts and folds to create different levels of friction. This allows one part of the robot to grip the ground while another slides forward, recreating the crawling motion of a worm.
It can also steer, rotate in place, and detect obstacles using onboard proximity sensors. Researchers believe the technology could eventually be used in confined or unpredictable environments, including search-and-rescue operations, environmental monitoring and industrial inspections.
Despite those useful applications, viewers have struggled to look beyond its rather… unique appearance after a clip of the robot in action went viral on Reddit. Tons of commenters were quick to highlight its shape, joking: “Yeah… A worm…” while another added, “Why do I feel like someone is gonna use it for something else?”
For now, the machine remains an early research prototype rather than a finished robot ready to be deployed during emergencies, but it’s clear plenty of people are finding the robot more hilarious than life-saving.
I’m Abhishek Sharma, an author at TigerJek.com. I enjoy exploring games, testing different strategies, and turning what I learn into clear, useful guides. My goal is to help players understand the game better and improve without the usual confusion.
