| Soft-bodied robotics is a new class of robotic technology defined by high deformability; an attribute which promises to extend the reach of current robotics. Navigation through constricted passages is a particularly challenging task for modern robots because their geometry dictates a specific envelope through which they can move. Soft-bodied robots, not possessing specific geometry, are able to "spread out" in one dimension in order to make another dimension smaller. To further the development of soft robotics this thesis presents a method for disturbance rejection for the establishment of robust gaits and a template for soft-bodied locomotion which is useable in the creation of future soft bodied systems by acting as a prediction model of system energy transfer. These two contributions are a start towards efficient, stable, predictable locomotion in mobile soft robotic systems. |
