| Abstract Scope |
The multifunctionality observed in many biological systems and biomaterials provides much inspiration for materials engineering. Engineers have long sought to improve material performance, capabilities, and utility across various applications by introducing multifunctionality in material design. Still, despite much progress in materials chemistry, assembly, digital manufacturing, and more, engineering soft, biological materials with capabilities that match those observed in the natural world remains nontrivial. This poses significant challenges to fields like soft robotics, where the design and integration of soft matter into multifunctional material systems with truly autonomous and robotic capabilities is essential for continued progress. In this talk, I will present our latest work in 3D printing soft architected materials with autonomous and robotic capabilities inspired by biological stimuli-responsiveness, movement, and sensing. |