Shape-shifting robot conquers real-world obstacles with ruggedness

Researchers at Ben Gurion University in Israel have developed DSTAR, a shape-shifting crawling robot designed to navigate diverse and challenging terrains by altering its form. The robot combines two key mechanisms: a sprawling mechanism that adjusts the width of its wheel arms, and a Four-bar extension mechanism (FBEM) that lifts or lowers its sides. This dual system enables DSTAR to shift its center of mass dynamically, maintain balance on uneven surfaces, and select different gaits—similar to how animals adapt their walking styles to various environments. Demonstrations showed the robot overcoming obstacles such as narrow gaps, high planks, sidewalks, steps, slopes, and rough or grassy terrain, sometimes requiring multiple attempts but ultimately succeeding in traversing these challenges. The researchers utilized kinematic modeling and force analysis to optimize DSTAR’s design, ensuring motor strength and movement efficiency for real-world applications. Compared to previous symmetric FBEM designs like RSTAR, DSTAR improved climbing capacity by 66 percent, highlighting the advantages of its shape