A Cave Western Reserve University researcher named Kiju Lee took an ordinary origami tower design into a flexible “origami robot” design named TWISTER. It uses claws on the end to pick up and manipulate fragile objects.

The robot was inspired by an origami tower design that uses multiple origami sections to form a tower when put together. Lee and her team remade the design with more robotics involved with the intention for it to be used in manufacturing and robotics. Recently, the team has converted the design into 3d-printable models, which made it possible to make more complex designs. 

The robot has claws on the end of it to be used to move and manipulate fragile objects. Due to the robots soft and flexible design, it can be much safer for people to interact with in assembly lines for example. The malleable design of the robot may also make it possible for it to survive in the harsh conditions of space.

This robot can be a replacement for more dangerous hard bodied robots and could be used as a robot arm in space.

Here’s a link to the article:

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/09/170927102354.htm

And here’s a video of the robot