Biological Adhesives: From Biology to Biomimetics

A special issue of Biomimetics (ISSN 2313-7673). This special issue belongs to the section "Biomimetic Surfaces and Interfaces".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 November 2022) | Viewed by 31145

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Institute of Bio-inspired Structure and Surface Engineering, Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, 29 Yudao Street, Nanjing 210016, China
Interests: locomotion behavior; zoology; morphology; gecko; reaction force; biomechanics; adhesion; soft climbing robots; trajectory planning; friction
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China Nanhu Academy of Electronics and Information Technology, 111 Qixing Street, Jiaxing 314002, China
Interests: adhesion mechanism; cross-scale regulatory structure; climbing robots; legged locomotion; surface roughness; stability analysis; real-time systems; control in adhesion locomotion
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Guest Editor
School of Mechanical and Automotive Engineering, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou, China
Interests: bionic adhesion robot; application of adhesion robot; functionalization; chemical synthesis; photocatalysis; heterojunction
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
College of Mechanical & Electrical Engineering, Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, 29 Yudao Street, Nanjing 210016, China
Interests: nanomaterials synthesis; material characterization; chemical vapor deposition; manufacture and application of micro/nano structure; intelligent adhesion structure; space environment
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Many natural organisms show advanced functional properties compared with modern machines. The research process from biology to biomimetics is to study, learn and imitate the excellent functions and characteristics of organisms, and then promote the development and application of science and technology. Due to the need for foraging and escaping, animals in nature have evolved feet with macro and micro sophisticated structures that form reliable adhesive contact with natural surfaces, as well as the ability to regulate adhesion ability. The high-performance biomimetic adhesion system is one of the keys for intelligent robots to achieve unobstructed full-space locomotion, which promotes basic research on the origin and mechanical properties of bioadhesion, inspiring biomimetic microstructure adhesive surfaces, adhesion mechanisms, climbing robots, etc. However, it is still extremely challenging that an in-depth understanding of bioadhesion systems and their translation into biomimetic designs and implementations by mimicking biological structures or behaviors. This Special Issue aims to collect the latest progress in the fields of biology/biomimetic adhesion/biomimetic micro-nano structure/bio-mechanism from different academic institutions, so as to promote the development and application of biomimetic adhesion.

In order to achieve the goal of combining basic research and applications, this Special Issue covers the topics range from bioadhesion mechanisms to biomimetic adhesion technologies, including, but not limited to, the following contents: adhesion mechanisms, adhesion mechanics models, biomimetic dry adhesion materials/structures, biomimetic adhesion units/mechanisms, bioinspired adhesion motion control, etc.

Dr. Zhouyi Wang
Dr. Xuan Wu
Dr. Saihua Jiang
Dr. Yang Li
Guest Editors

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Keywords

  • bio-adhesion mechanism
  • adhesion mechanics
  • bio-inspired design principles of adhesion system
  • bionic adhesive material/structure
  • bionic adhesion robot
  • control in adhesion locomotion
  • application of bionic adhesion robot

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Published Papers (10 papers)

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Research

Jump to: Review

21 pages, 8888 KiB  
Article
Reversible Adhesive Bio-Toe with Hierarchical Structure Inspired by Gecko
by Liuwei Wang, Zhouyi Wang, Bingcheng Wang, Qingsong Yuan, Zhiyuan Weng and Zhendong Dai
Biomimetics 2023, 8(1), 40; https://doi.org/10.3390/biomimetics8010040 - 16 Jan 2023
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2581
Abstract
The agile locomotion of adhesive animals is mainly attributed to their sophisticated hierarchical feet and reversible adhesion motility. Their structure–function relationship is an urgent issue to be solved to understand biologic adhesive systems and the design of bionic applications. In this study, the [...] Read more.
The agile locomotion of adhesive animals is mainly attributed to their sophisticated hierarchical feet and reversible adhesion motility. Their structure–function relationship is an urgent issue to be solved to understand biologic adhesive systems and the design of bionic applications. In this study, the reversible adhesion/release behavior and structural properties of gecko toes were investigated, and a hierarchical adhesive bionic toe (bio-toe) consisting of an upper elastic actuator as the supporting/driving layer and lower bionic lamellae (bio-lamellae) as the adhesive layer was designed, which can adhere to and release from targets reversibly when driven by bi-directional pressure. A mathematical model of the nonlinear deformation and a finite element model of the adhesive contact of the bio-toe were developed. Meanwhile, combined with experimental tests, the effects of the structure and actuation on the adhesive behavior and mechanical properties of the bio-toe were investigated. The research found that (1) the bending curvature of the bio-toe, which is approximately linear with pressure, enables the bio-toe to adapt to a wide range of objects controllably; (2) the tabular bio-lamella could achieve a contact rate of 60% with a low squeeze contact of less than 0.5 N despite a ±10° tilt in contact posture; (3) the upward bending of the bio-toe under negative pressure provided sufficient rebounding force for a 100% success rate of release; (4) the ratio of shear adhesion force to preload of the bio-toe with tabular bio-lamellae reaches approximately 12, which is higher than that of most existing adhesion units and frictional gripping units. The bio-toe shows good adaptability, load capacity, and reversibility of adhesion when applied as the basic adhesive unit in a robot gripper and wall-climbing robot. Finally, the proposed reversible adhesive bio-toe with a hierarchical structure has great potential for application in space, defense, industry, and daily life. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biological Adhesives: From Biology to Biomimetics)
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14 pages, 8284 KiB  
Article
A Spiny Climbing Robot with Dual-Rail Mechanism
by Yanwei Liu, Hao Wang, Chongyang Hu, Qiang Zhou and Pengyang Li
Biomimetics 2023, 8(1), 14; https://doi.org/10.3390/biomimetics8010014 - 1 Jan 2023
Viewed by 2224
Abstract
Easy detachment is as important as reliable an attachment to climbing robots in achieving stable climbing on vertical surfaces. To deal with the difficulty of detachment occurring in wheeled and track-type climbing robots using bio-inspired spines, a novel climbing robot utilizing spiny track [...] Read more.
Easy detachment is as important as reliable an attachment to climbing robots in achieving stable climbing on vertical surfaces. To deal with the difficulty of detachment occurring in wheeled and track-type climbing robots using bio-inspired spines, a novel climbing robot utilizing spiny track and dual-rail mechanism is proposed in this paper. The spiny track consists of dozens of spiny feet, and the movement of each spiny foot is guided by the specially designed dual-rail mechanism to achieve reliable attachment and easy detachment. First, the design of the climbing robot and the dual-rail mechanism are presented. Then, the dual-rail model is constructed to analyze the attaching and detaching movements of the spiny feet, and a mechanical model is established to analyze the force distribution on the spiny track. Finally, a robot prototype is developed, and the analysis results are verified by the experiment results. Experiments on the prototype demonstrated that it could climb on various rough vertical surfaces at a speed of 36 mm/s, including sandpaper, brick surfaces, concrete walls with pebbles, and coarse stucco walls. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biological Adhesives: From Biology to Biomimetics)
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12 pages, 4715 KiB  
Article
Magnetically Tunable Adhesion of Magnetoactive Elastomers’ Surface Covered with Two-Level Newt-Inspired Microstructures
by Shiwei Chen, Ziyuan Qian, Xiaojiao Fu and Xuan Wu
Biomimetics 2022, 7(4), 245; https://doi.org/10.3390/biomimetics7040245 - 16 Dec 2022
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2012
Abstract
As one of the new intelligent materials, controllable bionic adhesive materials have great application prospects in many fields, such as wearable electronic devices, wall climbing robot systems, and biomedical engineering. Inspired by the microstructure of the newt pad’s surface, this paper reports a [...] Read more.
As one of the new intelligent materials, controllable bionic adhesive materials have great application prospects in many fields, such as wearable electronic devices, wall climbing robot systems, and biomedical engineering. Inspired by the microstructure of the newt pad’s surface, this paper reports a bionic adhesive surface material with controllable adhesion on dry, wet acrylic, and iron sheet surfaces. The material is prepared by mixing the PDMS matrix with micron carbonyl iron powders (CIPs) and then pouring the mixture into a female mold prepared by Photo-curing 3D Printing for curing. As the mold interior is designed with a two-level microstructure array, the material’s surface not only coated a regular hexagonal column array with a side length of 250 μm and a height of 100 μm but also covered seven dome structures with a diameter of 70 μm on each column. In what follows, the adhesion force of the proposed materials contacted three different surfaces are tested with/without magnetic fields. The experimental results show that the MAEs covered with two-level bionic structures(2L-MAE) reported in this paper exhibit a stronger initial adhesion in the three types of surfaces compared to the normal one. Besides, we also found that the magnetic field will noticeably affect their adhesion performance. Generally, the 2L-MAE’s adhesion will increase with the external magnetic field. When the contact surface is an iron sheet, the material adhesion will be reduced by the magnetic field. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biological Adhesives: From Biology to Biomimetics)
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15 pages, 3013 KiB  
Article
Contact Electrification of Biological and Bio-Inspired Adhesive Materials on SiO2 Surfaces: Perspectives from DFT Calculations
by Jing Tao, Linfeng Wang, Kaixuan Kong, Minhao Hu and Zhendong Dai
Biomimetics 2022, 7(4), 216; https://doi.org/10.3390/biomimetics7040216 - 28 Nov 2022
Viewed by 2139
Abstract
In this study, we investigate the contact electrification properties of glycine, cysteine, and dimethyl siloxane on silicon dioxide (SiO2) surfaces using density functional theory calculations. Molecule contacting through the sulfhydryl group has stronger adhesion to the SiO2-O and SiO [...] Read more.
In this study, we investigate the contact electrification properties of glycine, cysteine, and dimethyl siloxane on silicon dioxide (SiO2) surfaces using density functional theory calculations. Molecule contacting through the sulfhydryl group has stronger adhesion to the SiO2-O and SiO2-OH surfaces. The SiOH/SiO2-Si system has the largest adhesion energy in all molecule/SiO2-Si contact systems and charge transfers from the molecule to the SiO2-O and SiO2-Si surfaces. The molecule/SiO2-OH systems have a reverse charge transfer direction. Molecules with their sulfhydryl and hydroxyl groups facing the SiO2-O and SiO2-OH surfaces have more transferred charges. The NH2/SiO2-Si system has a larger transferred charge than other molecule/SiO2-Si systems. The direction of charge transfer is determined by the Bader charge of the isolated surface atoms. The respective energy difference in the lowest unoccupied occupied molecular orbitals between contacting atoms influences the charge transfer. The respective energy difference in the highest occupied molecular orbitals reflects the electron attraction and affects charge transfer. Finally, the quantitative relationship between the transferred charge and energy gaps is established to evaluate the charge transfer. The findings propose a new perspective and in-depth understanding of contact electrification and shed light on the bio-inspired adhesive materials design and fabrication for engineering applications. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biological Adhesives: From Biology to Biomimetics)
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18 pages, 6232 KiB  
Article
Enhanced Adhesion of Synthetic Discs with Micro-Patterned Margins
by Weimian Zhou and Xuan Wu
Biomimetics 2022, 7(4), 202; https://doi.org/10.3390/biomimetics7040202 - 18 Nov 2022
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2556
Abstract
Many aquatic creatures in nature have non-cooperative surface scaling abilities using suction organs; micro-/nano-scale structures found in different parts of the organs play an important role in this mechanism. Synthetic bioinspired suction devices have been developed, but the mechanisms of bioinspired suction system [...] Read more.
Many aquatic creatures in nature have non-cooperative surface scaling abilities using suction organs; micro-/nano-scale structures found in different parts of the organs play an important role in this mechanism. Synthetic bioinspired suction devices have been developed, but the mechanisms of bioinspired suction system need further investigation. This paper presents the development of a synthetic adhesive disc inspired by the hillstream loach. The microscopic structures involved in adhesion of the hillstream loach were investigated. Bioinspired suction discs were designed with single-level or hierarchical micropatterned margins. Micro three-dimensional (3D) printing and micro electromechanical system (MEMs) technology were utilized in the fabrication of the discs, and the adhesion performance was tested on substrates with different roughness values. The engaging and disengaging processes of the margin were simulated by carrying out a peeling test on a submerged substrate. The interactions between the liquid film and the microstructures were observed using fluorescence microscopy. The enhanced adhesion forces due to the synergy of the hierarchically micro-patterned margin and the disc cavity were duplicated in the synthetic adhesion system. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biological Adhesives: From Biology to Biomimetics)
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12 pages, 5120 KiB  
Article
A Novel Wheel-Legged Hexapod Robot
by Yong Ni, Li Li, Jiahui Qiu, Yi Sun, Guodong Qin, Qingfei Han and Aihong Ji
Biomimetics 2022, 7(4), 146; https://doi.org/10.3390/biomimetics7040146 - 29 Sep 2022
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 2873
Abstract
Traditional mobile robots are mainly divided into wheeled robots and legged robots. They have good performance at fast-moving speeds and crossing obstacles, and weak terrain adaptability and moving speeds, respectively. Combining the advantages of these two types mentioned, a multi-functional wheel-legged hexapod robot [...] Read more.
Traditional mobile robots are mainly divided into wheeled robots and legged robots. They have good performance at fast-moving speeds and crossing obstacles, and weak terrain adaptability and moving speeds, respectively. Combining the advantages of these two types mentioned, a multi-functional wheel-legged hexapod robot with strong climbing capacity was designed in this paper. Each wheel-leg of the robot is driven directly by a single motor and can move smoothly and quickly in a diagonal tripod gait. Based on the obstacle-crossing way of the wheel-leg and combined with the characteristics of insects moving stably in nature, the middle part of the robot body is wider than head and tail. Tripod gait was selected to control the robot locomotion. A series of simulations and experiments were conducted to validate its excellent adaptability to various environmental conditions. The robot can traverse rugged, broken, and obstacle-ridden ground and cross rugged surfaces full of obstacles without any terrain sensing or actively controlled adaptation. It can negotiate obstacles of approximately its own height, which is much higher than its centre of gravity range. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biological Adhesives: From Biology to Biomimetics)
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14 pages, 5090 KiB  
Article
Design of a Variable Stiffness Gecko-Inspired Foot and Adhesion Performance Test on Flexible Surface
by Zhiwei Yu, Jiahui Fu, Yu Ji, Benhua Zhao and Aihong Ji
Biomimetics 2022, 7(3), 125; https://doi.org/10.3390/biomimetics7030125 - 5 Sep 2022
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 2909
Abstract
Adhesion robots have broad application prospects in the field of spacecraft inspection, repair, and maintenance, but the stable adhesion and climbing on the flexible surface covering the spacecraft has not been achieved. The flexible surface is easily deformed when subjected to external force, [...] Read more.
Adhesion robots have broad application prospects in the field of spacecraft inspection, repair, and maintenance, but the stable adhesion and climbing on the flexible surface covering the spacecraft has not been achieved. The flexible surface is easily deformed when subjected to external force, which makes it difficult to ensure a sufficient contact area and then detach from it. To achieve stable attachment and easy detachment on the flexible surface under microgravity, an adhesion model is established based on the applied adhesive material, and the relationship between peeling force and the rigidity of the base material, peeling angle, and working surface stiffness is obtained. Combined with the characteristics of variable stiffness structure, the adhesion and detachment force of the foot is asymmetric. Inspired by the adhesion-detachment mechanism of the foot of the gecko, an active adhesion-detachment control compliant mechanism is designed to achieve the stable attachment and safe detachment of the foot on the flexible surface and to adapt to surfaces with different rigidity. The experimental results indicate that a maximum normal adhesion force of 7.66 N can be generated when fully extended, and the safe detachment is achieved without external force on a flexible surface. Finally, an air floating platform is used to build a microgravity environment, and the crawling experiment of a gecko-inspired robot on a flexible surface under microgravity is completed. The experimental results show that the gecko-inspired foot with variable stiffness can satisfy the requirements of stable crawling on flexible surfaces. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biological Adhesives: From Biology to Biomimetics)
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18 pages, 1398 KiB  
Article
Effect of the Structural Characteristics on Attachment-Detachment Mechanics of a Rigid-Flexible Coupling Adhesive Unit
by Qijun Jiang, Liuwei Wang, Zhiyuan Weng, Zhouyi Wang, Zhendong Dai and Weidong Chen
Biomimetics 2022, 7(3), 119; https://doi.org/10.3390/biomimetics7030119 - 26 Aug 2022
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2336
Abstract
The terminal toes of adhesive animals are characterized by rigid-flexible coupling, and their structure–function relationship is an urgent problem to be solved in understanding bioinspired adhesive systems and the design of biomimetic adhesive units. In this paper, inspired by the rigid-flexible coupling adhesive [...] Read more.
The terminal toes of adhesive animals are characterized by rigid-flexible coupling, and their structure–function relationship is an urgent problem to be solved in understanding bioinspired adhesive systems and the design of biomimetic adhesive units. In this paper, inspired by the rigid-flexible coupling adhesive system of the gecko toe, a rigid-flexible coupling adhesive unit was designed, the interface strength of the adhesives under different preloads was tested, and the model and analysis method of the compression and peeling process of the rigid-flexible coupling adhesive unit was established. Meanwhile, combined with the experimental test, the effect of the coupling mechanism of the rigid-flexible structure on the interfacial stress and the final peeling force during the compression and peeling process of the adhesive unit was studied. The research found that the length of the adhesive unit L has no apparent effect on the normal peel force of the system within a specific range, and the normal peeling force increases linearly with the increase in the compression force P; while the influence of the inclination angle θ0 of the adhesive unit and the thickness of the rigid backing layer hb on the final normal peeling force of the system presents nonlinear characteristics, when the inclination angle θ0 of the adhesive unit is 5°, and the thickness of the rigid backing layer hb is 0.2 mm or 0.3 mm, the normal peel force and the ratio of adhesion force to preload the system reaches its maximum value. Compared with the flexible adhesive unit, the compressed zone formed by the rigid-flexible coupling adhesive unit during the same compression process increased by 6.7 times, while under the same peeling force, the peel zone increased by 8 times, and the maximum normal tensile stress at the peeling end decreased by 20 times. The rigid-flexible coupling mechanics improves the uniformity of the contact stress during the compression and peeling process. The research results provide guidelines for the design of the rigid-flexible coupling adhesive unit, further providing the end effector of the bionic wall-climbing robot with a rigid-flexible coupled bionic design. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biological Adhesives: From Biology to Biomimetics)
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17 pages, 3622 KiB  
Article
The Neural Control Mechanisms of Gekkonid Adhesion Locomotion: The Effect of Spinal Cord Lesions
by Xiaoqing Wang, Wenbo Wang and Zhendong Dai
Biomimetics 2022, 7(3), 98; https://doi.org/10.3390/biomimetics7030098 - 22 Jul 2022
Viewed by 1983
Abstract
Objective: the role of the supraspinal system in the neural control mechanisms of adhesion locomotor pattern formation was studied in lizard Gekko gecko. Methods: the locomotor performance and adaptation of the chronically lesioned Gekko gecko was documented before and after either partial [...] Read more.
Objective: the role of the supraspinal system in the neural control mechanisms of adhesion locomotor pattern formation was studied in lizard Gekko gecko. Methods: the locomotor performance and adaptation of the chronically lesioned Gekko gecko was documented before and after either partial or complete spinal lesions. They were filmed moving on a flat and smooth platform that was inclined at 0°, ±45°, and ±90°, as well as the horizontal mats and the vertical oak background board in the terraria, to evaluate locomotor functional recovery. The geckos were also tested on the platform by two half and nose-up or -down rotations in steps of 15° throughout 180° to investigate the recovery of the ability to respond dynamically to external perturbations. Results: after relatively small lesions of a hemisection, the locomotor performance was largely indistinguishable from that before and after a sham operation. During the initial period of recovery after the largest lesions of a dorsal or a ventral hemisection within 1 wk, the geckos behaved essentially as the complete spinal geckos, while permanent deficits in locomotor performance remained and did not decrease afterwards for ≥6 mth. Conclusions: by analyzing the correlation among locomotor performances, and between locomotor performances and spinal cord lesions, we suggest that the dorsal spinal pathways and ventral spinal pathways participate, respectively, in the control of the limb coupling, and in the deployment and the detachment of the adhesive apparatus. The present study will provide certain neurobiological guidance for the design of bio-robots, as well as sprawling robots inspired by the geckos. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biological Adhesives: From Biology to Biomimetics)
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Review

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30 pages, 1818 KiB  
Review
Advances in Climbing Robots for Vertical Structures in the Past Decade: A Review
by Guisheng Fang and Jinfeng Cheng
Biomimetics 2023, 8(1), 47; https://doi.org/10.3390/biomimetics8010047 - 22 Jan 2023
Cited by 24 | Viewed by 8226
Abstract
Climbing robots are designed to conduct tasks that may be dangerous for humans working at height. In addition to improving safety, they can also increase task efficiency and reduce labor costs. They are widely used for bridge inspection, high-rise building cleaning, fruit picking, [...] Read more.
Climbing robots are designed to conduct tasks that may be dangerous for humans working at height. In addition to improving safety, they can also increase task efficiency and reduce labor costs. They are widely used for bridge inspection, high-rise building cleaning, fruit picking, high-altitude rescue, and military reconnaissance. In addition to climbing, these robots need to carry tools to complete their tasks. Hence, their design and development are more challenging than those of most other robots. This paper analyzes and compares the past decade’s design and development of climbing robots that can ascend vertical structures such as rods, cables, walls, and trees. Firstly, the main research fields and basic design requirements of climbing robots are introduced, and then the advantages and disadvantages of six key technologies are summarized, namely, conceptual design, adhesion methods, locomotion modes, safety mechanisms, control methods, and operational tools. Finally, the remaining challenges in research on climbing robots are briefly discussed and future research directions are highlighted. This paper provides a scientific reference for researchers engaged in the study of climbing robots. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Biological Adhesives: From Biology to Biomimetics)
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