Scientists create brain-less robots that run on air, not electricity

A research team at the University of Oxford has developed a novel class of soft robots—termed “fluidic robots”—that operate entirely without electronics, motors, or computers, relying solely on air pressure for movement, sensing, and coordination. These robots are constructed from small modular units that function as muscles, sensors, or valves depending on their arrangement, allowing them to be combined like LEGO blocks into various shapes and functions. The robots demonstrate rhythmic, synchronized movements purely through mechanical design and physical interaction with their environment, without any programmed control. Inspired by natural systems that exhibit coordinated behavior without centralized nervous systems, the team created prototypes including a “shaker robot” that sorts beads by tilting a platform and a “crawler robot” that detects edges to avoid falling. The synchronization of movement arises from feedback loops generated by contact forces between the robot’s limbs and the ground, a phenomenon explained using the Kuramoto model of synchronization. This self-organizing behavior, likened to fireflies flashing in unison,