2022 Annual Report 2022 | Page 47

A team of researchers led by Virginia Tech Assistant Professor Michael Bartlett have developed an octopus-inspired glove capable of securely gripping objects underwater . Their research was selected for the July 13 cover of Science Advances .
Humans aren ’ t naturally equipped to thrive in an underwater environment . We use tanks to breathe , neoprene suits to protect and warm our bodies , and goggles to see clearly . In such an environment , the human hand also is poorly equipped to hold onto things . Anyone who has tried to hold onto a wriggling fish will testify that underwater objects are difficult to grip with our land-dwelling fingers .
“ There are critical times when this becomes a liability ,” said Bartlett . “ Nature already has some great solutions , so our team looked to the natural world for ideas . The octopus became an obvious choice for inspiration .”
Rescue divers , underwater archaeologists , bridge engineers , and salvage crews all use their hands to extract people and objects from water . Human hands with less capability to hold slippery things must resort to using more force , and an iron grip can sometimes compromise those operations . When a delicate touch is required , it would be helpful to have hands made for water .
Those are the very appendages that Bartlett and his fellow researchers sought to build . His team in the Soft Materials and Structures Lab adapted biological solutions into new technologies made from soft materials and robotics .
GRABBING INSPIRATION FROM POWERFUL ADHESION
The octopus is one of the most unique creatures on the planet , equipped with eight long arms that can take hold of myriad things in an aquatic environment . In a beautiful integration of practical tools and intelligence , these arms are covered with suckers controlled by the sea animal ’ s muscular and nervous systems .
Each sucker , shaped like the end of a plunger , contributes a powerful snatching ability . After the sucker ’ s wide outer rim makes a seal with an object , muscles contract and relax the cupped area behind the rim to add and release pressure . When many of the suckers are engaged , it creates a strong adhesive bond that is difficult to escape .
“ When we look at the octopus , the adhesive certainly stands out , quickly activating and releasing adhesion on demand ,” said Bartlett . “ What is just as interesting , though , is that the octopus controls over 2,000 suckers across eight arms by processing information from diverse chemical and mechanical sensors . The octopus is really bringing together adhesion tunability , sensing , and control to manipulate underwater objects .”
PUTTING THE INSPIRATION INTO ACTION
To design their glove , the researchers focused on re-imagining the suckers : compliant , rubber stalks capped with soft , actuated membranes . The design was created to perform the same function as the sucker of an octopus — activating a reliable attachment to objects
ANNUAL REPORT 2022
47