Topological Solitons Make Metamaterials Crawl

Abstract

Topological solitons propagating in mechanical metamaterials point toward potential applications in wave propagation, mechanical logic, and shape morphing. Inspired by the rich physics of topological solitons, researchers show here that this wave phenomenon can be also exploited to make a multistable metamaterial crawl. While previously proposed crawling machines usually require complex control of multiple actuators, this robot can be powered by a single actuator. All features needed for locomotion are embedded in the material and activated by the topological soliton, which here is the boundary between the two flexed forms of mechanical units linked in a chain.