Researchers at North Carolina State University have created soft, teardrop-shaped robots that can crawl or leap when infrared light shines on them.
The robots twist to store elastic energy, release it to jump, then return to their original shape on their own. That lets them repeat the motion as long as the light remains present.
Small changes to one part of the design control whether a robot crawls, jumps forward or leaps straight up. In tests, the robots moved across grass, sand, rocks, mulch and water surfaces.
The work is an early step rather than a finished product. The researchers say the idea may eventually help robots move through uneven outdoor environments, where wheels do not always work well.
