Category: Mechanical Engineering & Materials Science

Already boasting a strong team focused on areas such as precision robotic aids for clinical applications, controlling complex swarms of robots collaborating on a single mission, and securing autonomous systems from nefarious attacks, Duke Robotics is expanding its areas of expertise with the hiring of Siobhan Oca and Boyuan Chen.

Engineers at Duke University have developed a scalable soft surface that can continuously reshape itself to mimic objects in nature. Relying on electromagnetic actuation, mechanical modeling and machine learning to form new configurations, the surface can even learn to adapt to hindrances such as broken elements, unexpected constraints or changing environments.