Toward Intelligent Soft Robots

Soft robotics has reshaped robotic morphology and locomotion, which offers novel solutions for adaptive operation in unstructured environments and safe human–robot collaboration. Nevertheless, purely passive or pre‑programmed soft robots face fundamental limitations in “intelligence”. The continuous deformation of soft bodies makes them difficult to model and challenging to control, while conventional sensors and computing architectures are often incompatible with their flexible substrates. Currently, the field is at a critical turning point. The integration of advanced intelligent technologies with soft robotic systems is giving rise to a new generation of “intelligent soft robots.” For example, using machine learning to overcome the challenges of dynamic modeling and control, endowing robots with proprioceptive capabilities through embedded flexible sensing networks, and leveraging 3D/4D printing for integrated fabrication of structures, actuation, and perception. Ultimately, establishing a “sensing-thinking-action” closed loop will endow soft robots with active intelligence to adapt to changes in the real‑world environment.The core challenge in realizing intelligent soft robots lies in deeply integrating sensing, control, and intelligent algorithms into the soft body, thereby preserving compliance while endowing the system with active adaptation and autonomous decision‑making capabilities. This Research Topic aims to gather and showcase cutting-edge breakthroughs and innovative applications at the intersection of intelligent technologies and soft robotics. Its core objective is to advance the deep integration of intelligence and soft robots, explore how computational, perceptual, and learning capabilities can be embedded into robotic materials, structures, and systems, thereby addressing the fundamental challenges hindering the practical application of soft robots, such as autonomy, adaptability, robustness, and functionality. Through this Research Topic, we hope to provide a high-level platform for exchange among academic and industrial researchers, outline a technological roadmap and developmental trajectory for future intelligent soft robots, and accelerate their transition from laboratory prototypes to real-world deployment.We encourage submissions that demonstrate an integration between the "softness" (materials, mechanics) and the "intelligence" (computation, learning, perception), presenting holistic solutions to the fundamental challenges in this exciting field. Topics of interest include, but are not limited to:Intelligent Actuation, Materials, and Structures: Soft actuator design with the integration of sensing and actuation; 3D/4D printing for intelligent manufacturing of soft robots.Intelligent Modeling, Perception, and Control: Multimodal sensing technologies with proprioceptive/exteroceptive information fusion; Data-driven/Sim2Real learning for soft robot control;Autonomy and Embodied Intelligence: Autonomous navigation and task planning; coordination control of multiple soft robots or swarm intelligence; Safe human‑environment interaction via compliant control.System Integration and Innovative Applications: Compact integration of actuation, sensing, and control for soft robots; Fully integrated intelligent soft robotic systems for specific applications. Topic editors: Qiqiang HU, Junyang Li, Hu Jin Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/78230/toward-intelligent-soft-robots