Animal Bots · Part of The Humanoid Group
Biomimicry in Robotics
Many robots borrow ideas from animals, but copying nature well is harder than copying its looks. This guide explains what biomimetics means in engineering terms, with examples drawn from gecko toes and soaring birds, and where the approach reaches its limits.
By Kenji Nakamura · Updated
What counts as biomimetic design
Biomimetics has its own standard. ISO 18458:2015, Biomimetics: Terminology, concepts and methodology, provides a framework of terms for use in science, industry and education and describes the process of applying biomimetic methods, from the first idea to a finished product. According to ISO, a technical system developed through that process may be described as biomimetic, and the method can be applied wherever nature has produced a biological system sufficiently similar to the technical target system. ISO reviewed and confirmed the standard in 2021. For a buyer, the useful point is that a robot shaped like an animal is not automatically biomimetic; what matters is which function was studied and transferred.
Copying a gecko's grip, not its shape
Some of the most useful borrowings are invisible. Stanford engineers built a robotic hand called farmHand with pads based on the microscopic flaps on gecko toes, which grip through van der Waals forces, a weak attraction between molecules, Stanford News reported. The adhesive grips strongly with little applied force, does not feel sticky and leaves no residue, so the same hand could hold an egg and an angle grinder. Nothing about the hand looks like a lizard. When a maker calls a gripper, foot or skin bio-inspired, ask which animal property it reproduces, how that was measured and what the design does better than a conventional alternative.
Borrowing how birds use moving air
Animals offer behaviour to copy as well as structure. In npj Robotics, Elmkaiel, Schmitt and Muehlebach describe Floaty, a robot inspired by soaring birds that subtly adjust wing and tail profiles to exploit updrafts. Floaty uses four independently actuated flaps to change its aerodynamic profile and control drag, and the authors report a specific power consumption of 10 W/kg, which they describe as an order of magnitude lower than thruster-powered systems. In wind tunnel tests it hovered, manoeuvred and rejected disturbances in vertical airflows of up to 10 m/s. One lesson from the study is that energy savings can come from working with the environment, as animals do.
Where copying nature runs out
Biology solves the problems an animal faces, which are rarely the problems an engineer is paid to solve. A muscle repairs itself and a gecko regrows its skin, while a robot joint or adhesive pad wears out and needs spare parts. ISO 18458:2015 addresses the limits as well as the potential of biomimetics as an innovation approach, which is a healthy reminder for buyers. On this site, toys and companion robots often borrow an animal's appearance and movements to be appealing, while research machines borrow specific functions. Both are valid choices, but judge each against its purpose rather than by how lifelike it looks in a video.
Sources and further reading
- ISO 18458:2015 Biomimetics: Terminology, concepts and methodology — International Organization for Standardization (ISO).
Standard setting out biomimetic terms and the process for turning a biological model into a technical product. - A robotic hand with a gecko-inspired grip — Stanford News (Stanford University).
How Stanford engineers used gecko-style adhesive pads to let one robot hand hold both fragile and heavy objects. - Embodied intelligence for sustainable flight: a soaring robot with active morphological control — npj Robotics (Elmkaiel et al.).
Bird-inspired robot that holds position in rising air by changing its shape, using little power.
Common questions
Is biomimicry only about how robots move?
No. Engineers also copy sensing, such as whiskers and compound eyes, materials such as adhesive or self-cleaning surfaces, and group behaviour, such as flocks and swarms that coordinate without a leader. Movement is simply the most visible example, which is why it dominates videos and toy shelves.
Why do so many toy robots look like animals?
Animal shapes are familiar and appealing, which helps a toy invite touch and play. Looking like an animal is a design choice rather than evidence of biomimicry, so check the box or manual for what the robot actually senses and how it responds.
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