Kangaroo Tail-Inspired Variable Stiffness Executive Mechanism for Rescue Robots

In the field of casualty extraction and rescue, a key challenge is avoiding secondary injuries to the human body during rescue operations. Currently, most rescue robot executive mechanisms are rigid, which increases the risk of contact-related injuries. To address this issue, a rescue executive mechanism with variable stiffness, inspired by the kangaroo tail, is proposed. This mechanism can adapt to the human body's contours with flexible contact while providing sufficient rigidity and load-bearing capacity. By applying the layer jamming principle, the mechanism achieves variable stiffness, enabling it to self-adapt to the human body profile and support large loads. Drawing inspiration from the rigid support and shape adaptability of the kangaroo tail, a 3D model and a prototype of the executive mechanism were developed using bionic principles. The mechanism's performance was validated through variable stiffness tests, contour adaptation tests, and human model holding and loading experiments. The results demonstrate that the rescue robot executive mechanism exhibits high load-bearing capacity (load 32.17 kg), strong adaptability, and enhanced safety, effectively addressing the limitations of rigid mechanisms that may harm the human body.