Transmission of electric signal among robots enables them to construct a team to behave beyond capabilities of the individuals. However, such a signal transmission is elusive so far for soft robots due to the employment of soft materials, rather than traditionally rigid electronic units. In this study, we demonstrate neuron-inspired soft robots (NISRs) with an electromagnetic induced signal transmission system. The prototype 15-cm-long NISRs can not only be moved driven by a manually moving magnet but also transmit signals to others in a noncontact type based on the electromagnetic induction through their tentacle units. Owing to the motion and special signal transmission mode, three NISRs can form diverse signal transport pathways to light up light emitting diodes in different positions. Furthermore, an alternative current (AC) signal can be generated when applying an interval loading/unloading compressive force with the velocity of 800 mm·min⁻¹ on the head of NISR integrated a magnet and a coil (named it NISR-plus). Such an AC signal can be immediately sensed by neighboring NISRs, indicating the construction of a signal transmission network among the NISR team. Our results open perspectives to realize signal transmission of soft robots via wireless electromagnetic induction and favor the development of soft robot teams.

中文翻译：

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受神经元启发的软体机器人团队及其基于电磁感应的非接触电信号传输

机器人之间的电信号传输使他们能够构建一个团队，以超越个人的能力。然而，由于使用软材料而不是传统的刚性电子单元，到目前为止，这种信号传输对于软机器人来说是难以捉摸的。在这项研究中，我们展示了具有电磁感应信号传输系统的神经元启发软体机器人 (NISR)。原型 15 厘米长的 NISR 不仅可以通过手动移动的磁铁驱动移动，还可以通过触手单元基于电磁感应以非接触式方式向其他人传输信号。由于运动和特殊的信号传输模式，三个 NISR 可以形成不同的信号传输路径来点亮不同位置的发光二极管。此外，NISR头部的^{−1集成了一块磁铁和一个线圈（命名为NISR-plus）。}这样的交流信号可以立即被相邻的 NISR 感知到，表明 NISR 团队之间建立了信号传输网络。我们的研究结果为通过无线电磁感应实现软体机器人的信号传输开辟了前景，有利于软体机器人团队的发展。