Programmable robotic textile with closed-loop self-sensing and active actuation.

Untethered robotic textile with integrated sensing, control, and actuation achieves stable, programmable morphing using low-voltage liquid metal and liquid crystal elastomer fibers.

• Why it matters: Current robotic textiles face challenges like material incompatibility, unstable sensing during movement, and safety concerns, limiting their practical use in medical and human augmentation applications.
• What they did: The researchers developed a low-voltage, all-in-one core-sheath fiber system combining liquid metal and liquid crystal elastomers with passive yarns, capable of sensing preload, strain, and temperature variations.
• The result: This textile enables high-force, voltage-tunable actuation and adaptable shape changes, supporting applications such as locomotion, posture correction, thermal management, and electromagnetic interference reduction.