Bioinspired Soft Robot: Earthworm-Inchworm Actuation for Complex Environments

Robotic exploration in complex environments necessitates multidimensional locomotion adaptability, while existing has inadequately addressed the fundamental kinematic coupling mechanisms between planar and inclined locomotion modalities. A soft robot, inspired by the locomotion mechanisms of the earthworm and the inchworm, is proposed here, which consists of three components: a telescopic torso, flexible necks, and adhesive feet. The telescopic torso enables peristaltic wave transmission through axial deformation, while the flexible necks enable dexterous posture adjustment via large-angle deformation capabilities, complemented by adhesive feet providing anchoring characteristics. Modular pneumatic control facilitates adaptive switching between earthworm crawling mode (crawling speed: 0.11 BL/s, steering speed:13.1°/s) and inchworm crawling mode (crawling speed: 0.072 BL/s). Moreover, by combining its earthworm and inchworm modes, the soft robot can stably climb slopes up to 15 degrees. A hybrid probe combining telescopic extension and SMA-driven steering resolves narrow bend detection challenges.