Continuous and large-scale: ELEANOR, the soft architected arm inspired by the elephant trunk

2026-07-08

AI Summary

This work addresses the limitations of existing continuum robots, which often rely on modular designs that struggle to balance dexterity, environmental adaptability, and dynamic performance. Inspired by the African elephant trunk, the study proposes a structurally continuous design paradigm that abandons conventional modularity, resulting in an 85-cm-long tapered flexible continuum manipulator fabricated via integrated 3D printing. A tendon-driven actuation system emulates the trunk’s longitudinal and oblique musculature, enabling biomimetic whole-arm motion and adaptive grasping. Experimental results demonstrate the manipulator’s capability to efficiently grasp objects of diverse shapes and sizes, confirming the functional fidelity and superiority of the proposed bioinspired design relative to its biological counterpart.

Abstract

The elephant trunk is a dexterous and versatile manipulator whose performance is still unmatched in robotics. In previous works, modularity was prioritized and relatively small-scale continuum robots were built. We take the natural proboscis of the *Loxodonta africana* species as a model and propose a different design approach which favors structural continuity and dynamic properties that plausibly emulate those of the natural trunk, while conferring high adaptability to the environment and humans. Instead of targeting prescribed behaviors, we show that a biomimetic design based on the macroscopic properties of the natural system enables elephant-like movements and grasping. We build by 3D printing an 85 cm long, compliant, tapered, volumetrically tessellated continuum arm, which is combined with tendon-driven actuation mimicking the longitudinal and oblique muscles of the natural model. We demonstrate whole-body grasping of objects having different shapes and dimensions and discuss a comparison to the biological trunk highlighting aspects of both biology and robotics.

Problem

• continuum robot
• elephant trunk
• biomimetic design
• structural continuity
• adaptive grasping

Innovation

• continuum robot
• biomimetic design
• tendon-driven actuation
• soft robotics
• structural continuity