Projet STORM-BOTS (Horizon 2020, appel à projets 2020)
Action : Doctoral Networks
Panel : Chemistry
Statut du projet : SIGNED

Soft responsive materials and new fabrication schemes are key ingredients to develop new disruptive technologies for robotic elements and devices. Such devices are anticipated to revolutionize the fields of minimally invasive surgery, targeted drug delivery, material sampling and manipulation, responsive functional surfaces and human-machine interfaces. The use of soft responsive, instead of hard inert, matter in these areas provides unique features such as the material being able to sense the environment and autonomously perform complex tasks – “the material is the machine”. In this scenario, liquid crystal elastomers are receiving an increasing deal of attention as they exhibit large, programmable mechanical deformations in response to different stimuli. Europe has played a leading role in liquid crystal science since its birth. To be at the forefront also tomorrow, we aim at harnessing the full potential of liquid-crystal-based responsive surfaces, soft actuators and smart machines. Encompassing aspects from chemistry, physics, materials science, advanced manufacturing and robotics, we will train 13 science-educated and engineering-minded young pioneers to advance the state of the art of this exciting research field. STORM-BOTS will count on academic and non-academic leaders from top research institutions and with unique scientific and technical expertise, in order to provide the next generation of scientists and engineers the best possible research environment for developing new materials and manufacturing tools to enable advanced robotic functions. Based on innovative individual research projects, STORM-BOTS will provide the students with a transnational, comprehensive, highly integrated, multidisciplinary and multi-sectoral training programme. Through local and network-wide training activities, the students will learn the many faces of this cutting-edge research area, as well as a variety of relevant transferable skills needed for their future careers.

Mots clés : liquid crystal elastomers, responsive polymers, additive manufacturing, soft actuators, soft robotics, computational engineering

Participants :
- Preceyes bv (Pays-Bas) — Partner, beneficiary, Organismes privés (hors enseignement), subvention : 265619.88 €
- Spanish National Research Council (Espagne) — Coordinator, beneficiary, Recherche, subvention : 501809.76 €
- Tampere University (Finlande) — Partner, beneficiary, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 561611.52 €
- Eindhoven University of Technology (Pays-Bas) — Partner, beneficiary, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 796859.64 €
- Sabic global technologies bv (Pays-Bas) — Partner, beneficiary, Organismes privés (hors enseignement), subvention : 0.0 €
- Universidad de Zaragoza (Espagne) — Partner, beneficiary, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 250904.88 €
- Sant'Anna School of Advanced Studies (Italie) — Partner, beneficiary, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 261499.68 €
- University of Cambridge (Royaume-Uni) — Partner, beneficiary, Enseignement supérieur ou secondaire, subvention : 303172.56 €
- Max Planck Society (Allemagne) — Partner, beneficiary, Recherche, subvention : 252788.4 €
- Netherlands Organisation for Applied Scientific Research (Pays-Bas) — Partner, beneficiary, Recherche, subvention : 265619.88 €