Robotic flytrap with an ultra-sensitive 'trichome' and fast-response 'lobes'.

Abstract

Nature abounds with examples of ultra-sensitive perception and agile body transformation for highly efficient predation as well as extraordinary adaptation to complex environments. Flytraps, as a representative example, could effectively detect the most minute physical stimulation of insects and respond instantly, inspiring numerous robotic designs and applications. However, current robotic flytraps face challenges in reproducing the ultra-sensitive insect-touch perception. In addition, fast and fully-covered capture of live insects with robotic flytraps remains elusive. Here we report a novel design of a robotic flytrap with an ultra-sensitive 'trichome' and bistable fast-response 'lobes'. Our results show that the 'trichome' of the proposed robotic flytrap could detect and respond to both the external stimulation of 0.45 mN and a tiny touch of a flying bee with a weight of 0.12 g. Besides, once the 'trichome' is triggered, the bistable 'lobes' could instantly close themselves in 0.2 s to form a fully-covered cage to trap the bees, and reopen to set them free after the tests. We introduce the design, modeling, optimization, and verification of the robotic flytrap, and envision broader applications of this technology in ultra-sensitive perception, fast-response grasping, and biomedical engineering studies.