Our attempts to mimic the locomotion of animals have led to many technological advances that have revolutionized how artificial machines and robots travel through air, in water, and over land. The bio-mechanisms have been optimized for specific locomotion, such as climbing walls or jumping on the water, according to their habitat. These extreme locomotions fascinated biologists and robotic researchers and lead to the creation of simpler and more effective mechanisms than the conventional systems. Based on biological studies and multi-material layered structure, we introduce a Gecko-inspired soft directional adhesion gripper and insect-inspired water jumping robot with drag-based propulsion. Multi-material layered structure facilitates the fabrication of 3D structures and compliant structures at various scales by using a multi-material with different elastic modulus. The Gecko-inspired soft directional adhesion gripper successfully picks up and releases thin, flexible materials of various sizes such as flexible printed circuit boards without damage. The insect-inspired water jumping robot is capable of vertical and directional jump on the water surface with drag-based propulsion. These design and applications of multi-material layered structure-based bio-inspired robots overcomes the limitations of conventional machines and expand the area that robots work in.
