Soft robots show excellent body compliance, adaptability, and mobility when coping with unstructured environments and human–robot interactions. However, the moving speed for soft locomotion robots is far from that of their rigid partners. Rolling locomotion can provide a promising solution for developing high-speed robots. Based on different rolling mechanisms, three rolling soft robot (RSR) prototypes with advantages of simplicity, lightweight, fast rolling speed, good compliance, and shock resistance are fabricated by using dielectric elastomer actuators. The experimental results demonstrate that the impulse-based and gravity-based RSRs can move both stably and continuously on the ground with a maximum speed higher than 1 blps (body length per second). The ballistic RSR exhibits a high rolling speed of ∼4.59 blps. And during its accelerating rolling process, the instantaneous rolling speed of the robot prototype reaches about 0.65 m/s (13.21 blps), which is much faster than most of the previously reported locomotion robots driven by soft responsive materials. The structure design and implementation methods based on different rolling mechanisms presented can provide guidance and inspiration for creating new, fast-moving, and hybrid mobility soft robots.

中文翻译：

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电动软机器人：通过滚动加速

软机器人在应对非结构化环境和人机交互时表现出出色的身体顺应性、适应性和移动性。然而，软运动机器人的移动速度与其刚性伙伴相差甚远。滚动运动可以为开发高速机器人提供有前景的解决方案。基于不同的滚动机构，采用介电弹性体致动器制作了具有简单、轻便、滚动速度快、柔顺性好、抗冲击等优点的三种滚动软机器人（RSR）原型。实验结果表明，基于脉冲和基于重力的 RSR 可以在地面上稳定连续地移动，最大速度高于 1 blps（每秒体长）。弹道式 RSR 表现出约 4.59 blps 的高滚动速度。并且在加速滚动过程中，机器人原型的瞬时滚动速度达到约 0.65 m/s（13.21 blps），这比之前报道的大多数由软响应材料驱动的运动机器人要快得多。所提出的基于不同滚动机构的结构设计和实现方法可以为创造新型、快速移动和混合移动的软机器人提供指导和启发。