Research Workshop at ICRA 2025 Atlanta, USA
Multi-Stable and Origami-based Soft Robots
May 19, 2025
Georgia World Congress Center, Atlanta, USA
Bi- and multi-stable structures, including origami structures, allow to rapidly release stored strain energy as they transition between various equilibrium shapes. These snap-through transitions between stable configurations enable the generation of rapid and amplified deformations. The application of bi- and multi-stability to soft actuators and robots has attracted significant research interest. Previous and current work demonstrated numerous innovative applications of bi- and multi-stability. These include single-input control mechanisms, high-speed actuations for jumping robots, significant shape reconfigurations, adaptive sensing, mechanical logic computations, and more.
This workshop aims to showcase recent developments and foster connections among researchers exploring multistability in the field of soft robotics.
Invited Speakers
Cynthia Sung
University of Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania
Ruike Renee Zhao
Stanford University, Stanford
Miha Brojan
University of Ljubljana, Slovenia
Hanqing Jiang
Westlake University, China
Yogesh Phalak
Virginia Tech, Virginia
Yasemin Ozkan-Aydin
University of Notre Dame, Indiana
Lihua Jin
UCLA, California
Katia Bertoldi
Harvard, Massachusetts
Ziyang Zhou
Virginia Tech, Virginia
Kyu-Jin Cho
Seoul National University, South Korea
Perla Maiolino
University of Oxford, England
Tian Chen
University of Houston, Texas
Organizers
Amir Gat
Technion – Israel Institute of Technology, Israel
Robert Shepherd
Cornell University, New York
Ezra Ben-Abu
Technion – Israel Institute of Technology, Israel
Zeynep Temel
Carnegie Mellon University, Pennsylvania
Hod Lipson
Columbia University, New York
May 19th - Monday
09:00-09:10 Workshop Introduction
09:10-09:30 Katia Bertoldi - Multistability for Mechanical Intelligence
09:30-09:50 Kyu-Jin Cho - 3D Printed Soft Origami for Deployable Soft Robots
09:50-10:10 Hod Lipson - Fast Untethered Soft Robotic Crawler with Elastic Instability
10:10-10:20 10 spot-light talks of 1 minute each
10:20-11:00 Coffee Break & First poster session and demos
11:00-11:20 Ruike Renee Zhao - Bioinspired Origami Millirobots
11:20-11:40 Zeynep Temel - How Adaptive Morphology Shapes Locomotion
11:40-12:00 Robert Shepherd - Bang Bang – Millisecond Sense and Respond Loop Using Explosive Actuation of Bistable Structures
12:00-12:30 Lunch Break
12:30-12:50 Lihua Jin - Non-Equilibrium Soft Robotic Matter
12:50-13:10 Ezra Ben-Abu - Magnetic Control of Metafluids for Fluid-Like Applications of Metamaterials
13:10-13:30 Yasemin Ozkan-Aydin - How Adaptive Morphology Shapes Locomotion
13:40-14:20 Coffee Break & Second poster session and demos
13:30-13:40 10 spot-light talks of 1 minute each
14:20-14:40 Amir Gat - Flow-Controlled Shape-Morphing Structures with Multiple Stable End-States
14:40-15:00 Yogesh Phalak - Golden Ratio Yoshimura (1) --- How a slight tweak in a classical folding pattern enables massive meta-stability
15:00-15:20 Ziyang Zhou - Golden Ratio Yoshimura (2) --- Leveraging the metastability to create a deployable and multi-functional robotic crane
15:20-15:40 Coffee Break & Group discussion circles
15:40-16:00 Cynthia Sung - Algorithmic Design of Origami Robots
16:00-16:20 Hanqing Jiang - Mechanics and Devices of Origami-based Haptics
16:20-16:40 Perla Maiolino - Exploring Kinematic Bifurcations and Hinge Compliance for In‐Hand Manipulation
16:40-17:00 Coffee Break & Group discussion circles
17:00-17:20 Miha Brojan - Multistable Origami Inspired Concept for Propulsion of Soft Robots Through Fluid Media
17:20-17:40 Tian Chen - Mechanical Multi-Stability Towards Robotic Intelligence
17:40-18:00 Workshop conclusions & Winners announcement
Preliminary Program
The program is subject to change, and will be updated continuously up to the conference.
Call for abstract - Short talks and posters
We invite ICRA 2025 attendees to submit abstracts related to the following topics:
-
Fabrication of bi- or multi-stable structures
-
Bi- or Multi-stable structures in soft robotics
-
Origami structures in soft robotics
-
Fabrication of origami structures
Late-breaking results, materials under review, and elaborations on previously accepted works are all welcome.
Format:
-
1 page maximum (excluding references)
-
ICRA double-column format (templates available here)
-
Submit abstract as a PDF file (10 MB limit)
-
Authors of accepted abstracts will be asked to give a 1-minute spotlight talk and present a poster in person at the workshop; live demos are greatly encouraged!
-
Accepted abstracts will be made publicly available on the workshop website
Timeline:
-
February 18, 2025: Call for abstracts opens
-
April 27, 2025: Submission deadline
-
May 04, 2025: Acceptance notifications
-
May 07, 2025: Extended submission deadline
-
May 11, 2025: Acceptance notifications for extended submissions
Submission:
Please send your abstract to Ezrab@campus.technion.ac.il with the subject line: "Abstract for Multi-Stable and Origami-based Workshop ICRA 2025".
We will hold competitions for Best Demo and Best Poster!
Location
The upcoming conference will be held at the Georgia World Congress Center, located in Atlanta, USA. Stay tuned for more detailed information on the exact location within the venue, which will be communicated at a later time.
