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INSTITUTE OF PHYSICS PUBLISHING BIOINSPIRATION & BIOMIMETICS
Bioinsp. Biomim. 1 (2006) P1–P12 doi:10.1088/1748-3182/1/1/P01

PERSPECTIVE

Biomimetics—using nature to inspire

human innovation
Yoseph Bar-Cohen
Jet Propulsion Lab, California Institute of Technology, 4800 Oak Grove Drive, Pasadena,
CA 91109-8099, USA
E-mail: [email protected]

Received 7 November 2005

Accepted for publication 7 March 2006
Published 27 April 2006
Online at stacks.iop.org/BB/1/P1

Abstract
Evolution has resolved many of nature’s challenges leading to lasting solutions. Nature has
always inspired human achievements and has led to effective materials, structures, tools,
mechanisms, processes, algorithms, methods, systems, and many other benefits (Bar-Cohen Y
(ed) 2005 Biomimetics—Biologically Inspired Technologies (Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press)
pp 1–552). This field, which is known as biomimetics, offers enormous potential for inspiring
new capabilities for exciting future technologies. There are numerous examples of biomimetic
successes that involve making simple copies, such as the use of fins for swimming. Others
examples involved greater mimicking complexity including the mastery of flying that became
possible only after the principles of aerodynamics were better understood. Some commercial
implementations of biomimetics, including robotic toys and movie subjects, are increasingly
appearing and behaving like living creatures. More substantial benefits of biomimetics include
the development of prosthetics that closely mimic real limbs and sensory-enhancing
microchips that are interfaced with the brain to assist in hearing, seeing and controlling
instruments. A review is given of selected areas that were inspired by nature, and an outlook
for potential development in biomimetics is presented.

Introduction doing all of the things that are characteristic of biological

systems. If we are successful in making biomimetic structures
The term biomimetics, which was coined by Otto H Schmitt that consist of multiple cells, we may be able to design devices
(Schmitt 1969), represents the studies and imitation of nature’s and mechanisms that are currently considered science fiction.
methods, mechanisms and processes. Nature’s capabilities are Emerging nanotechnologies increasingly enhance the potential
far superior in many areas to human capabilities, and adapting of such capabilities. Humans have learned much from nature
many of its features and characteristics can significantly and the results have helped surviving generations and continue
improve our technology (Bar-Cohen 2005, Vincent 2001). to secure a sustainable future.
Creatures in nature, if viewed as engineering designs, have Through evolution, nature has ‘experimented’ with
general features rather than designs with specifications that various solutions to its challenges and has improved the
are exact duplicates. As opposed to man-made designs that successful ones. Specifically, nature, or biology, experimented
require exact duplication, creatures are able to perform quite with the principles of physics, chemistry, mechanics, materials
well while having an identity that distinguishes one member science, mobility, control, sensors, and many other fields that
from another in the same species. In contrast, our commercial we recognize as science and engineering. The process has
products are sought to be duplicated as closely as possible to also involved scaling from nano and micro to macro and
assure their quality and performance. The cell-based structure, mega. Living systems archive the evolved and accumulated
which makes up the majority of biological creatures, offers information by coding it into the species’ genes and passing
the ability to grow with fault-tolerance and self-repair, while the information from one generation to another through

1748-3182/06/010001+12$30.00 © 2006 IOP Publishing Ltd Printed in the UK P1

Y Bar-Cohen

Figure 1. The desire to fly was implemented using aerodynamic principles leading to enormous capabilities such as the supersonic
passenger plane, the Concorde (photographed by the author at the Boeing Aerospace Museum, Seattle, WA).

Figure 2. The sensitive fern has its leaves open (left) until they are touched (right).

self-replication. Surviving organisms that nature created are many years before humans arrived, no patent can be granted
not necessarily optimal for the organism performance since all in the ‘patent court’ of nature to the first human who produced
they need to do is to survive long enough to reproduce. the honeycomb configuration.
Adapting ideas from biology can involve copying the Plants also offer ideas for imitation and they have evolved
complete appearance and function of specific creatures, as in in various ways, with some that produced uncommon solutions
toy manufacture where simplistic imitations are increasingly to their special needs (Stahlberg and Taya 2005). In addition
being incorporated to form electromechanized toys such to their familiar characteristics, some plants exhibit actuation
as dogs that walk and bark, frogs that swim, and many capabilities that we would expect from biological creatures.
others. Flying was inspired by birds using human-developed Such plants include mimosa and sensitive fern (onoclea
capabilities, whereas the design and function of fins, which sensibilis) that bend their leaves when touched (see figure 2).
divers use, was copied from the legs of water creatures like There are also bug-eating plants with a leaf-derived trap
seals. Once human flying became feasible, improvements that closes the ‘door’ locking unsuspecting bugs that enter
in aircraft technology led to capabilities that far exceed any the cage and become prey. The sunflower tracks the sun’s
creature living on earth (see the example in figure 1). direction throughout the day to maximize exposure to its light.
Biological materials (Carlson et al 2005) have capabilities Understanding the mechanism that drives this capability as
that surpass those of man-made ones and these include locally controlled actuators offers potentially effective new
silk, leather and wool that are widely used to make motors.
clothing. Further, biologically made structures have numerous
advantages and the honeycomb is one such example. Bees Biology as a model
create the honeycomb for its efficient packing configuration
and, for its low weight and high strength, the same structural Nature has an enormous pool of inventions that passed
shape of the honeycomb is used to produce many aircraft parts. the harsh test of practicality and durability in changing
Generally, there is no evidence that the man-made structure environment. In order to harness the most from nature’s
was copied from nature (Gordon 1976). However, since it is capabilities, it is critical to bridge between the fields of
a commonly known structure which was invented by nature biology and engineering and to see cooperation of experts

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 Biomimetics—using nature to inspire human innovation

Table 1. Characteristic similarities of biology and engineering systems.

Biology Engineering Bioengineering, biomimetics, bionics and biomechanics
Body System Systems with multifunctional materials and structures are developed emulating
the capability of biological systems
Skeleton and bones Structure and support struts Support structures are part of every man-made system
Brain Computer Advances in computers are being made emulating the operation of the human
brain
Intelligence Artificial intelligence There are numerous aspects of artificial intelligence that have been inspired by
biology including augmented reality, autonomous systems, computational
intelligence, expert systems, fuzzy logic, etc
Senses Sensors Computer vision, artificial vision, radar, and other proximity detectors all have
direct biological analogies. However, at their best, the capability of the
man-made sensors is nowhere near as good as biosensors
Muscles Actuators Electroactive polymers are actuators with functional similarity to natural muscles
Electrochemical Rechargeable batteries The use of biological materials to produce power will offer mechanical systems
power generation enormous advantages

from both fields. This bridging effort can help in turning Artificial intelligence (AI)
nature’s capabilities into engineering capabilities, tools and
mechanisms. In order to approach nature in engineering The operation of the brain is emulated in the field of artificial
terms, it is necessary to sort biological capabilities along intelligence (AI), which is a term that was coined in 1956. AI
technological categories. Namely, one can take biologically is a branch of computer science that studies the computational
identified characteristics and seek an analogy in terms of requirements for tasks such as perception, reasoning and
engineering as shown in table 1. learning, to allow the development of systems that have
Some of nature’s capabilities can inspire new these capabilities (Russell and Norvig 2003). According to
mechanisms, devices and robots. Examples may include the American Association for Artificial Intelligence (AAAI),
the woodpecker’s ability to impact wood while suppressing artificial intelligence (AI) is: “the scientific understanding of
the effect from damaging its brain. Another inspiring the mechanisms underlying thought and intelligent behavior
capability is the ability of numerous creatures to operate and their embodiment in machines”. AI researchers are
with multiple mobility options including flying, digging, addressing a wide range of problems that include studying
swimming, walking, hopping, running, climbing, crawling. the requirements for expert performance of specialized tasks,
Increasingly, biologically inspired capabilities are becoming explaining behavior in terms of low-level processes, using
practical including collision avoidance using whiskers or models inspired by the computation of the brain and explaining
sonar, controlled camouflage, and materials with self-healing. them in terms of higher level psychological constructs
One of the challenging capabilities will be to create miniature such as plans and goals. The field seeks to advance the
devices that can understanding of human cognition (Hecht-Nielsen 2005),
understand the requirements of intelligence in general, and
• fly with enormous maneuverability like a dragonfly; develop artifacts such as intelligent devices, autonomous
• adhere to smooth and rough walls like a gecko; agents and systems that cooperate with humans to enhance
• adapt to the texture, patterns and shape of the surrounding their abilities. AI technologies consist of an increasing
environment like a chameleon, or reconfigure their body number of tools, including artificial neural networks, expert
to travel through very narrow tubes like an octopus; systems, fuzzy logic and genetic algorithms (Luger 2001,
• process complex three-dimensional (3D) images in real Lipson 2005, Drezner and Drezner 2005). Increasingly,
time; AI components are embedded in devices and machines that
• recycle mobility power for highly efficient operation and combine case-based reasoning and fuzzy reasoning to operate
locomotion; automatically or even autonomously. AI systems are used
• self-replicate, self-grow using resources from the for tasks such as identifying credit card fraud, pricing airline
surrounding; tickets, configuring products, aiding complex planning tasks
and advising physicians. AI is also playing a growing role in
• chemically generate and store energy; and
corporate knowledge management, facilitating the capture and
• many other capabilities for which biology offers a model reuse of expert knowledge.
for science and engineering inspiration.
While many aspects of biology are still beyond our Biologically inspired mechanisms
understanding, significant progress has been made.
The various aspects of biology that were used to inspire There are numerous examples of mechanisms that were
man-made technologies are discussed in the following section inspired by observing biology; several examples are given
and they show the enormous progress that has been made. herein.

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Inchworm linear motors Biologically inspired structures and tools

The biologic inchworm is a caterpillar of a group of moths Biological creatures can build amazing shapes and structures
called Geometridae, which has six front legs and four rear legs. using materials in their surroundings or materials that they
Emulating the mobility mechanism of this larva, or caterpillar, produce. The produced structures are quite robust and
led to the development of motors and linear actuators that are support the required function over the duration the function is
known as inchworms. These commercially available motors needed. Such structures include the birds’ nest and the bees’
are driven by piezoelectric actuators (made by companies such honeycomb. Often the size of a structure can be significantly
as Burleigh Instruments) and they are capable of moving at a larger than the species that built it, as is the case with the
speed of about 2 mm s−1 with a resolution of nanometers spider’s web. Birds make their nests from twigs and other
while providing hundreds of millimeters of traveling. The materials that are secured to various stable objects, such as
forces produced by these types of motors can reach over 30 N trees, and their nests are durable throughout the bird’s nesting
with zero backlash and high stability. Their non-magnetic season. One may wonder how birds have the capability to
content offers advantages for applications in test instruments design and produce the correct shape and size that matches
such as magnetic resonance imagers (MRI). As opposed to the requirements of allowing laid eggs to hatch and grow as
biological muscles, the piezoelectric actuated inchworms have chicks until they leave the nest. The nest’s size accounts for the
zero-power dissipation when holding position. Inchworm potential number of eggs and chicks, in terms of the required
mechanisms have many configurations where the unifying
space. Even plants offer engineering inspiration, where
drive principle is the use of two brakes and an extender. These
mimicking the concept of seeds that adhere to an animal’s
motors perform cyclic steps where the rear brake clamps onto
fur Velcro was invented and it has led to an enormous impact
a shaft and an extender pushes the front brake forward. Then
in many fields, including clothing and electric-wires strapping.
the front brake clamps the shaft releasing the rear brake and
Devices and instruments that are designed using biologically
retracting the extender to move one step forward and this step
inspired rules are intuitive to operate by humans, which makes
can be as small as 1 nm.
them user friendly and means they require minimal operation
instructions. Examples of structures and tools that were most
Pumping mechanisms likely initiated from imitation of biological models are listed
Pumping mechanisms in nature offer a great model for fluid below. These examples illustrate the diverse and incredible
and gas pumping devices. Nature uses various pumping number of possibilities that have already been mimicked.
mechanisms that are also used in mechanical pumps. The
lungs pump air in and out (tidal pumping) via the use of Honeycomb
the diaphragm that enables our breathing with the support
of the inter-rib muscles. Peristaltic pumping is one of the The honeycomb is made by bees in total darkness and it
most common forms of pumping in biological systems, where consists of a perfect hexagonal cellular structure that offers
liquids are squeezed in the required direction (Wu et al 2005). an optimal packing shape. For honeybees, the geometry
Such pumping is common in the digestive system. Pumping meets their need for making a structure that provides the
via valves and chambers that change volume is found in maximum amount of stable containment (honey, larvae) using
human and animal hearts, with expansion and contraction of the minimum amount of material. For the same reasons, the
chambers. The use of one-way valves is the key to the blood honeycomb is an ideal structure for the construction of control
flow inside the veins, where the pressure is lower. surfaces of an aircraft and it can be found in the wing, elevators,
tail, the floor, and many other parts that need strength and large
dimensions while maintaining low weight.
Controlled adhesion
Controlled wet or dry adhesion is achieved by many organisms. Fishing nets and screens
Using a highly fibrillated microstructure, the Hemisphaerota
cyanea (a beetle) uses wet adhesion that is based on capillary The fishing net can be viewed as another imitation of nature
interaction. On the other hand, the gecko exhibits remarkable that most likely resulted from humans observing the spider
dry adhesion using van der Waals forces. Even though using its web to catch flies. Even more basic, the concept of
these forces provide low intrinsic energy (∼50 mJ m−2), a fiber or string may have been inspired by the spider. Both
their effective localized application allow for the remarkable the spider web and the fishing net have structural similarities
capability (Autumn et al 2002). Using this adhesion and the same function of trapping passing-by creatures. The
mechanism, the gecko can run on polished glass at a speed screen, mesh and sieving devices that allow separation of
of about 1 m s−1 and attach its body to the wall using a single objects of various sizes may also be attributed to the evolution
toe to support its body weight. This capability motivated of the net.
efforts to mimic the gecko’s adhesion mechanism and some
limited success was reported. Such research was conducted Fins
by Autumn and Peattie (2003) who developed an artificial
foot-hair tip model for a dry, self-cleaning adhesive that works Unlike the failure to fly when copying the flapping of birds’
under water and in vacuum. wings, the use of fins to enhance swimming and diving has

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been highly successful. While it may be arguable if fins were

a direct biologically inspired invention, one can state that it is
a common knowledge that swimming creatures have legs with
gossamer (geese, swans, seagulls, seals, frogs, etc). Imitating
the legs of these creatures offered the inventors of fins a model
that was improved to the point that it resembles the leg of a
seal and somewhat like the frog’s leg. This similarity to the
latter led to the naming of divers as frogmen, which is clearly
a biomimetic-inspired name.

Composite materials
Structural materials that consist of fibers that are bonded by a
matrix are known as composite materials and they are widely
found in animals and plants. The combination of the fiber Figure 3. The spider constructs an amazing web that is made of silk
material which for a given weight is five times stronger than steel.
and matrix provides great stiffness, flexibility and low weight
of the constructed structure. These properties of composite
materials made them very attractive and they are now widely fibers that are barely visible, allowing it to serve its function
used in commercial parts and structures including fishing rods, as an insect trap. The web can carry a significant amount
tennis rackets and structural components of aircrafts. of water droplets from fog, dew or rain. Just in time the
spider generates its fiber while hanging on to it as it emerges
cured and flawless from its body at room temperature and
Biological materials at atmospheric pressure. The spider has sufficient supply of
raw materials for its silk to span the web over great distances
The body is a chemical laboratory that processes chemicals
relative to its body. It is common to see webs tied in various
acquired from nature and turns them into energy, construction
shapes (including flat) between distant trees, and the web is
materials, waste and various multifunctional structures (Mann
amazingly larger compared to the size of the spider. Recent
1995). Natural materials have been well recognized by humans
progress in nanotechnology is showing promise for making
as sources of food, clothing, comfort, etc, where, to name a
few, one can include fur, leather, honey, wax, milk and silk fibers that are fine, continuous and with enormous strength.
(Carlson et al 2005). Even though some of the creatures For this purpose, an electrospinning technique was developed
and insects that produce materials are relatively small, they (Dzenis 2004) that allows the production of 2 µm diameter
can produce quantities of materials that are sufficient to meet fibers from polymer solutions or melts in high electric fields.
human consumption on a scale of mass production (e.g., The resulting nano-fibers were found to be relatively uniform
honey, silk and wool). The use of natural materials can be and did not require extensive purification.
traced back thousands of years. Silk, which is produced to
protect the cocoon of a silkmoth, has great properties that Honeybee as a multiple materials producer
include beauty, strength and durability. These advantages
are well recognized by humans and the need to make them Another miniature ‘material manufacturing engineer’ found
in any desired quantity led to the production of artificial in nature is the honeybee. The bee is well known for making
versions and imitations. Some of the fascinating capabilities honey from nectar that it collects from flowers, but it also
of natural materials include self-healing, self-replication, produces a honeycomb from wax. Historically, candles were
reconfigurability, chemical balance and multifunctionality. made using this beeswax, but with the advent of the petroleum
Many man-made materials are processed by heating and industry, candles are now mostly made from paraffin wax.
pressurizing, and it is in contrast to nature which always uses
ambient conditions. The fabrication of biologically derived Multifunctional materials
materials produces minimum waste and no pollution, where
the result is mostly biodegradable and is recycled by nature. Nature has made great efforts to use its resources effectively,
Learning how to process such materials can make our material and in addition to the use of power in efficient ways, including
choices greater and improve our ability to create recyclable its recycling, nature also assigns multifunctions to its materials
materials that can better protect the environment. and structures. The use of materials that perform multiple tasks
allows nature to make its creatures with a lower body weight.
The concepts of multifunctional materials and structures are
Spider web—strong fibers
being studied by many researchers and engineers (Nemat-
One of the biology’s best ‘manufacturing engineers’ with Nasser et al 2005) and have been the subject of a DAPRA
an incredibly effective material-fabrication capability is the program in the early 2000s. Increasingly, efforts are being
spider. It fabricates its web (figure 3) to make a very strong, made to emulate this characteristic where multiple disciplines
insoluble, continuous lightweight fiber, and the produced web are used including materials sciences, applied mechanics,
is resistant to rain, wind and sunlight. It is made of very fine electronics, photonics and manufacturing.

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Biosensors identification of the sample, an estimation of its concentration

or its characteristic properties. Using this technology
Living creatures are equipped with a sensory system, which allows the overcoming of the limitations of human sensing,
provides input to the central nervous system about the including individual variability, inability to conduct online
environment around and within their body, and the muscles are monitoring, subjectivity, adaptation, infections, harmful
commanded to act after analysis of the received information exposure to hazardous compounds and effect on the mental
(Hughes 1999). Biological sensory systems are extremely state. E-tongues are increasingly being used in applications
sensitive and limited only by quantum effects (Szema and Lee such as monitoring food taste and quality, non-invasive
2005, Bialek 1987). These sensory systems are increasingly diagnostics, searching for chemical/biological weapons, drugs
imitated, where we find our surroundings filled with sensors. and explosives, as well as environmental pollution monitoring.
Such sensors monitor our property from intruders, releasing
soap and water when washing our hands, releasing hot air Robotics emulating biology
or paper towels to dry our hands, tracking our driving speed,
observing our driving through intersections that are monitored The introduction of the wheel has been one of the most
by traffic lights, as well as many other applications. Similar important human inventions—allowing humans to traverse
to the ability of our body to monitor the temperature and keep great distances and perform tasks that would have been
it within healthy acceptable limits, our habitats, working and otherwise impossible within the lifetime of a single human
shopping areas have the environment control to provide us with being. While wheel-locomotion mechanisms allow great
comfortable temperatures. These examples are only a small distances and great speeds to be reached, wheeled vehicles
number of the types of sensors that are used in our surroundings are subjected to great limitations with regard to traversing
and the instruments that we use. Pressure, temperature, complex terrains that have obstacles. Obviously, legged
optical and acoustical sensors are widely in use and efforts are creatures can perform numerous functions that are far beyond
continuously being made to improve their sensing capability the capability of an automobile. Producing legged robots is
and reduce their size and the required power while mimicking increasingly becoming an objective for robotic developers,
ideas from biology. These include adapting principles from and considerations of using such robots for space applications
the eye to a camera, the whiskers of rodents as sensors for are currently underway. Also, operating robots as colonies
collision avoidance, and acoustic detectors that imitate the or flocks is a growing area of robotic research. Creating
sonar in bats. robots that mimic the shape and performance of biological
Other sensors that are being imitated include the sense of creatures has always been a highly desirable engineering
smell and taste. The topic of smell sensing has reached a level objective. Searching the Internet with the keyword robot
of interest and progress that led the researchers Linda B Buck would identify many links to research and development
and Richard Axel (1991) in 2004 to the Nobel Prize. The sense projects that are involved with such robots. The entertainment
of smell is our analyzer of chemicals of airborne molecules and toy industries greatly benefited from advancement in this
allowing us to determine the presence of danger and hazardous technology. Increasingly, robots are used in movies where
chemicals, as well as gives us the joy of good food and other creatures are shown to exhibit realistic behavior. Legged
pleasant odors. Imitating the sensing capability of the nose robots are even being developed for future NASA missions,
offers important potential applications, and efforts to make and an example of such a robot is shown in figure 4.
such sensors have been explored since the mid-1980s. There
are several devices that have been built and tested emulating
Artificial muscles
the nose, where some of the devices use a chemical sensor
array (Bartlett and Gardner 1999, Dickinson et al 1998, Nagle Polymers that can be stimulated to change shape and size
et al 1998). The technology is now at such a level that there are have been known for years. The functional similarity of
commercially available electronic noses, and they are applied such polymers led to their being named artificial muscles.
for environmental monitoring and quality control in fields such The activation mechanism for such polymers can be electric,
as food processing. chemical, pneumatic, optical or magnetic. Electrical
While the sense of smell examines the chemical content excitation is one of the most attractive stimulators that can
of gases, the sense of taste is the biological chemical analyzer produce elastic deformation in polymers. The convenience
that examines dissolved molecules and ions and it uses clusters and the practicality of electrical stimulation, as well as the
of receptor cells in the taste buds (Craven and Gardner 1996). improved capabilities, make electroactive polymers (EAP)
Each taste bud has a pore that opens out to the surface of one of the most attractive among the mechanically activatable
the tongue enabling molecules and ions to be taken into the polymers (Bar-Cohen 2004, 2005a).
mouth to reach into the receptor cells. Similar to the electronic Generally, EAP materials can be divided into two major
nose, researchers explored the development of an electronic categories based on their activation mechanism: electronic and
tongue that mimics the biological sensory capability (Vlasov ionic. Most electronic polymers (electrostrictive, electrostatic,
and Legin 1998). Generally, the electronic tongue is an piezoelectric and ferroelectric) require high activation fields
automatic system for analysis and recognition (classification) (>150 V µm−1) close to the breakdown level. However,
of liquids using sensor arrays, data acquisition elements and they can be made to hold the induced displacement under
analytical tools. The result of E-tongue tests can be the activation of a dc voltage, allowing them to be considered

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Figure 4. The six-legged robot, LEMUR (Limbed Excursion Mobile Utility Robot), which is developed at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory
(Courtesy of Brett Kennedy, JPL) and the eight-legged crab in an aquarium.

for robotic applications. These materials have a faster

response, a greater mechanical energy density, and they can
be operated in air. In contrast, ionic EAP materials (gels,
ionometric polymer–metal composites (IPMC), conductive
polymers and carbon nanotubes) require drive voltages as low
as 1–5 V and produce significant bending. However, bending
actuators have relatively limited applications for mechanically
demanding tasks due to the low force or torque that can
be induced. Also, with some exceptions, these materials
require maintaining their wetness and when containing water
they suffer electrolysis with irreversible effects when they are
subjected to voltages above 1.23 V. Except for conductive
polymers, it is difficult to sustain dc-induced displacements.
Unfortunately, EAP-based actuators still exhibit low force
below their efficiency limits, are not robust, and are not
Figure 5. An EAP driven arm made by students from Virginia Tech
available as commercial materials for practical application and the human opponent, a 17 year old student.
considerations. Each of the known materials requires adequate
attention to the associated unique properties and constraints. In
won against three robotic arms that participated. One of the
order to be able to take these materials from the development
competing arms and the human opponent are shown in figure 5.
phase to use as effective actuators, it is necessary to have
Even though the arms did not beat the challenger, one of the
an established EAP infrastructure. Effectively addressing the
arms was able to hold against the girl for 26 s and this is an
requirements of the EAP infrastructure involves developing important milestone.
its science and engineering basis; namely, understanding
the mechanism of EAP materials’ behavior, as well as
processing and characterization techniques. Enhancement of Defense and attack mechanisms in biology
the actuation force requires understanding the basic principles,
A critical aspect of the survival of various species is having
computational chemistry models, comprehensive material
effective defense and attack mechanisms to protect against
science, electromechanical analysis and improved material
predators, catch prey, secure mating, protect the young
processing techniques. Efforts are being made to gain a better
generation, procure and protect food and other essential
understanding of the parameters that control the EAP electro-
elements to survival. In today’s era where there is a need
activation force and deformation.
for innovative measures to deal with homeland security issues,
In 1999, the author challenged the world’s research and biomimetic concepts may enable us to further benefit from
engineering community to develop a robotic arm that is nature-inspired concepts, mechanisms and designs (Vincent
actuated by artificial muscles (moniker for EAP) to win a 2005). The following are some of the biologically inspired
wrestling match against a human opponent. The match’s mechanisms that were adapted by humans.
objectives are to promote advances towards making EAP
actuators that are superior to the performance of human
Camouflage
muscles. Also, it is sought to increase the worldwide visibility
and recognition of EAP materials, attract interest among The chameleon and the octopus are well known for their
potential sponsors and users, and lead to general public capability to change their body color. The octopus matches the
awareness since it is hoped that they will be the end users and shape and texture of its surroundings as well as releases ink
beneficiaries in many areas including medical, commercial and which completely masks its location and activity—although
military. The first arm-wrestling competition with a human the octopus is a color-blind creature (Hanlon et al 1999).
was held against a 17 year girl on 7 March 2005 and the girl Generally, camouflage is not solely used for concealment,

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it also allows getting close to prey before charging ahead head of a harpoon or an arrow makes it difficult to remove
and capturing it by gaining the element of surprise while from the body of a fish, animal and the human body.
minimizing the response time of the prey. In some
creatures, camouflage provides deterrence. For instance, some Decoy
snakes, which are harmless, mimic the appearance of highly
poisonous snakes. Further, some harmless flies camouflage The use of decoy is as ancient as the lizards’ use of its tail
themselves with bright colors, pretending that they are wasps. as a method to distract the attention of predators. The lizard
The camouflage capability of biological creatures has been autotomizes its tail and the tail moves rapidly, diverting the
the subject of imitation by all armies. In World War II, the attention of the suspected predator while the lizard escapes to
zoologist Hugh Cott (1938) was instrumental in guiding the safety. This method is quite critical to lizards’ survival and the
British army in developing camouflage techniques. Modern tail grows back again without leaving a scar. This capability
military uniforms and weapons are all colored in a way that is a great model for military strategies and also offers a model
makes them minimally visible by matching the background for potential healing of maimed parts of the human body.
colors in the area where the personnel operate. Further, like Success in adapting this capability could help some people
the use of ink by an octopus, soldiers in the army and on large with disabilities to possibly allow them to regrow amputated
naval vessels at sea use a smoke screen when they do not want or maimed parts of their body.
to be seen.
Interfacing biology and machines
Body armor
Interfacing between humans or animals and machines to
The shell is another means of protection that some creatures
complement or substitute our biological senses can enable
are equipped with, both on earth and underwater. Creatures
important means for medical applications. Of notable
with a body armor include turtles, snails and various shelled
significance is the interfacing of machines and the human
marine creatures (e.g., mussels, etc). There are several forms
brain. A development by scientists at Duke University
of shells ranging from the shelter that is carried on the back
(Wessberg et al 2000, Mussa-Ivaldi 2000) enabled this
(e.g., snails) to those with a full body cover in which case the
possibility where electrodes were connected to the brain of a
creatures can completely close the shell as a means of defense
monkey and, using brain waves, the monkey operated a robotic
against predators. While the snail is able to emerge from the
arm, both locally and remotely via the Internet. This research
shell and crawl as it carries the shell on the back, the turtle lives
is also being conducted at Caltech, MIT, Brown University and
inside its ‘body armor’ and is able to use its legs for mobility
other research institutes. Progress in the past couple of years
when it is safe and hide the legs and head when it fears danger.
led to the development of chips that can recognize brain signals
The idea of body protection was adapted by humans many
for movement and convert them into action (Musallam et al
thousands of years ago in the form of hand-carried shields that
2004). Monkeys fitted with such chips were trained to move
allowed for defense against sharp objects, such as knives and
the cursor on a computer monitor, where such devices translate
swords. As the capability to process metals improved, humans
signals from the brain’s motor cortex, the region that directs
developed better weapons to overcome the shield and therefore
forced the need for a better body armor in order to provide physical movement. Advances in this field have reached such
cover for the whole body. The armor that knights wore for a level that recently the US Food and Drug Administration
defense during the Middle Ages provided a metal shield from (FDA) approved, on a limited basis, the conduction of such
head to toe. In nature, the use of a shell for body protection experiments on humans. For this purpose, Cyberkinetics, in
is limited mostly to slow moving creatures and nearly all of Foxborough, MA (Serruya et al 2002), is developing this
them are plant-eaters. To overcome this limitation, humans capability using microchips that are implanted in the motor
modified the body armor concept to develop faster moving cortex region of five quadriplegic patients to allow them mouse
armored vehicles that provide both rapid mobile shield and control and computer access. The short-term objective of this
weaponry for defense and offense capabilities. study is to develop neural-controlled prosthetics. Using such
a capability to control prosthetics would require feedback in
order to provide the human operator a ‘feel’ of the environment
Hooks, pins, sting, syringe, barbs and spears
around artificial limbs. In addition to feedback, sensors will be
Most of us have experienced at least once the pain of being needed to allow users to protect the prosthetics from potential
hurt by a prick from plants—sometimes from something as damage (heat, pressure, impact, etc), just as the capability of
popular and beautiful as the rose bush. Such experience can our biological limbs.
also occur when interacting with certain creatures, such as a Interfacing of visualization and hearing devices and the
bee. In the case of a bee, the stinger is left in the penetrated human brain have already emerged where hearing devices are
area (continuing to pump poison into the body) and does not increasingly implanted and imaging devices are currently at
come out because of its spear shape. Humans adapted and advanced research stages (Szema and Lee 2005, Humayun et al
evolved the concept of sharp penetrators in order to create 2005). Emulating the eye focusing mechanism as well as
many tools for applications in medicine, sports and weaponry. the iris and the eyelid are found in today’s cameras. While
These tools include the syringe, spears, fishing hooks, stings, significant advances have already been made, the human
barbs etc. Once penetrated, the hook and barb section on the eyes combined with the brain have far superior capabilities,

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including image interpretation and recognition, ability to

rapidly focus without moving the lens location in the eye,
3D capability, high sensitivity, and operability in a wide range
of light intensities from very dark to quite bright light. The
need for such a capability has grown significantly with the
emergence of small digital cameras that are now part of
many cellular phones and webcams for telecommunication
via computers. It is highly desirable to see via such cameras
real-time images with a performance that approaches that
of the human eye. Also, researchers are working to create
implants that can help the vision-impaired regain the ability
to see (Humayun et al 2005). Increasingly, sophisticated
visualization and image recognition are emerging in security Figure 6. Four-finger EAP gripper lifting a rock similar to a human
systems. However, while lab demonstrations have been very hand.
successful, these systems still have recognition errors at an
unacceptable level. One of the benefits of this capability, they can provide an important avenue for introducing and
once the reliability issues are overcome, would be a standard experimenting with new actuators and devices. This is in
operation as part of homeland security in airports, public areas contrast to commercial applications, for which issues of mass
or even in our homes. production, consumer demand and cost per unit can be critical
to the transfer of technology to practical use.
Consideration of biomimetics for planetary Advances in EAP towards making actuators with stronger
application force and higher displacement output will allow making
capable legged robots and support the related research at
For future space exploration applications, biomimetics offers the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), which is part of NASA.
a pool of concepts that can potentially be used to enable new Generally, making biologically inspired robots that are driven
technologies and enhance the available capabilities. To take by EAP actuators may have capabilities that are superior to
advantage of the potential benefits to future NASA missions natural creatures since these robots are not constrained by
that can be harvested from mimicking from nature, Bar-Cohen evolution and survival needs that are critical to biological
et al (2004) used electroactive polymers and piezoelectric creatures. To mimic a biological hand using simple elements,
actuators and addressed the challenges to their application. the author and his co-investigators constructed a miniature
As a potential application of these materials, one can envision robotic arm that was lifted by an EAP actuator that is based on
that availability of strong and robust artificial muscles based rolled dielectric elastomer and operated as a linear actuator.
on EAP materials may enable us in coming years to produce A gripper was mounted on the arm and it was constructed of
biomimetic legged robots that can run as fast as a cheetah, carry four fingers consisting of IPMC-based EAP that operates as
mass like a horse, climb steep cliffs like a gecko, reconfigure a bending actuator (Bar-Cohen 2005a). The linear actuator
their body like an octopus, fly like a bird and dig tunnels was used to raise and drop a graphite/epoxy rod. Further,
like a gopher. This is an incredible vision for robots that can the bending EAP fingers (see figure 6) were constructed
potentially be used to explore planets in the universe, and it to grab objects, such as rocks, very similar to the human
may lead to future planetary mission plans that are based on a hand. Significant challenges were encountered when using
script for the robots operation following science fiction ideas. the IPMC for this application. These challenges included the
Some of the tasks that such robots may need to perform include requirement to maintain wetness, the difficulty to hold position
autonomously operate to detect water, various resources, and of the fingers under dc voltage, residual deformation after
possibly biological indicators in the search for past or present activation and many other issues (chapter 21 in Bar-Cohen
life or even construct facilities for future human habitats. Once (2004)).
such robots are made sufficiently reliable to operate in the Telepresence combined with virtual reality using haptic
harsh environment of space they will be able to act as human interfacing offers another important potential for space
surrogates in executing tasks that require human’s capabilities applications particularly for avoiding the direct contact of
without subjecting real persons to any unnecessary hazards. humans with hazardous conditions. The author and his co-
Space applications are among the most demanding in investigators used electrorheological fluids (ERFs) to explore
terms of the harshness of the operating conditions, requiring the development of related haptic interfaces (Fisch et al 2003).
a high level of robustness and durability. Making biomimetic ERF has the property of exhibiting increased viscosity when
capability using electroactive material will potentially allow it is subjected to a higher electric field and the response is
NASA to conduct missions on other planets using robots that relatively fast (milliseconds). Using such an interface for
emulate human operation ahead of the landing of humans. a simulator aided by virtual reality can potentially benefit
Generally, the requirements and challenges associated with medical therapy in space and at distant human habitats. The
making hardware based on the emerging technology for space probability that a medical urgent care procedure will be needed
flight are very difficult to overcome. However, since such in future missions is expected to increase with the growth in
applications usually involve producing only small batches, duration and distance of manned missions. A major obstacle

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Figure 7. A graphic view of an octopus-configured catheter for surgical applications.

Actuator

Bit cross
section

Coring bit and

cored material

Figure 8. A schematic view of the gopher operating in a borehole, and a photographic view of the compact gopher and a formed core.

may arise as a result of the unavailability of onboard medical and do not allow for delicate surgical procedures as required,
staff capable of handling every possible procedure that may for example, in the brain. A novel design was conceived by
be required. To conduct emergency treatments and deal the author and his research team, where a minimally invasive
with unpredictable health problems, the medical crews will robotic arm as a surgical tool can be constructed in an octopus
need adequate tools and the ability to practice the necessary configuration with multiple degrees of freedom tentacles
treatment at minimum risk to the astronauts. With the aid equipped with various tools. To implement such a possibility, a
of all-in-one-type surgical tools and a simulation system, combination of EAP as actuators and electrorheological fluids
astronauts with medical background may be able to practice (ERFs) was considered where the rigidity of such a flexible
the needed procedures and later physically perform them. robotic arm can be controlled, and it can be operated as a
Medical staff in space may be able to sharpen their professional haptic interface (Fisch et al 2003). A graphic illustration
skill by practicing onboard simulated procedures or using of such a futuristic concept is shown in figure 7 and it is
new procedures that are downloaded from Earth. Generally, biologically inspired using the octopus tentacle structure to
establish capabilities that are impossible today (Bar-Cohen
such a capability can also serve people who live in rural and
2005b). The required EAP actuators can be based on the
other remote sites with no readily available full medical care
multifunctional electroelastomer roll (MER) actuators that
capability. As an education tool employing virtual reality,
were developed by SRI International (Kornbluh et al 2004).
training paradigms can be changed while supporting the trend
This actuator has a cylindrical shape and it is made of dielectric
in medical schools towards replacing cadaveric specimens with elastomer, which was demonstrated to produce 380% actuation
computerized models of human anatomy. strain. MER actuators were already demonstrated to generate
To minimize the use of invasive surgical procedures high strain and moderate stress (up to 8 MPa). The response
in planetary missions, there will be a need for extensive speed varies in a wide range from 1 Hz to as high as 20 kHz,
robotic capabilities. The increased medical use of robotics depending on the type of elastomer material that is used
contributed significantly to reduction in mortality after surgery, and the amount of strain that is generated. One-degree-of-
faster recovery and minimized complications. An example of freedom (1-DOF), 2-DOF and 3-DOF spring rolls have been
the existing robotics is the de Vinci surgical system that is produced wherein the compliant electrodes are not patterned,
becoming a standard tool in an increasing number of hospitals are patterned on two, and are patterned on four circumferential
worldwide. Unfortunately, the current systems are quite large spans, respectively.

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 Biomimetics—using nature to inspire human innovation

Some of the challenges that are facing the users of EAP can learn manufacturing techniques from animals and plants
materials for space applications include the need to operate at such as the use of sunlight and simple compounds to produce
low or high temperatures. Particularly, there is a great need with no pollution biodegradable fibers, ceramics, plastics and
for materials that can operate at temperatures that are close various chemicals. Nature has already provided a model
to −200 ◦ C as on Titan and Europa or as high as 460 ◦ C for many man-made devices, processes and mechanisms. In
as on Venus. Another challenge is the need to develop large- addition to providing models, nature can serve as a guide to
scale EAP in the form of films, fibers, etc. The required determine the appropriateness of our innovations in terms of
dimensions can be as large as several meters or kilometers, durability, performance and compatibility.
and in such dimensions they can be used to produce large For the question ‘what else can we learn?’ it would be
gossamer structures such as antennas, solar sails, and various highly useful to build a documented database that would
large optical components. Future missions will need scaling examine biology from an engineering point of view and to
of the components in order to reach capabilities at orders of catalog nature capabilities. This catalog needs to include
magnitude higher than possible today. Using bulky materials the inventions that have already been used to possibly offer
that are made of metals or other heavy objects will be extremely different angles of looking at nature’s innovations to enrich
costly to launch and the option of using inflatable thin polymer- other fields that have not benefited yet. This database can
based structures is quite attractive. be documented in a format of web-page hyperlinks, that
Another biomimetic application for planetary exploration is, cross-linking related information. Developing such a
that has been investigated by the author is the use of database will require adequate training in both engineering
piezoelectric actuators for sample acquisition and handling. and biology. This will require cooperation between biologists
For over nine years, the author, members of his research and technologists/engineers as well as the establishment of
group at JPL, and engineers from Cybersonics, Inc, have such an education path in academic institutes that hopefully
been involved with research and development of sampling will also lead to new disciplines of biomimetic science and
techniques. The investigated techniques are mostly based engineering.
on the use of piezoelectric actuators that drive a penetrator The inspiration from nature is expected to continue
at the sonic-frequency range (Bar-Cohen 2005). Using the leading to technology improvements and the impact is
developed mechanism, which he called the Ultrasonic/Sonic expected to be felt in every aspect of our lives. Some of
Driller/Corer (USDC), a deep drill was developed that was the solutions may be considered science fiction in today’s
inspired by the gopher and its method of creating tunnels in capability, but as we improve our understanding of nature
the ground (Bar-Cohen et al 2004). A piezoelectric actuator and develop better capabilities this may become a reality that
produces vibration in the form of a hammering action and is closer than we think.
the mechanism consists of a bit that has a diameter that is
the same or larger than the actuator. The gopher is lowered
repeatedly in a cycle that consists of penetration to the depth
Acknowledgment
of the coring bit, breaking and holding the core, bringing the
Some of the research reported in this manuscript was
core to the surface, extracting it on the surface and returning
conducted at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), California
to the deepened borehole to continue the process. A gopher
Institute of Technology, under a contract with National
with the coring bit inside a limestone and the core that was
Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).
extracted are shown in figure 8.

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