3D Cocooner Complex lattice structures from the robotic spinneret Special features from the natural role model Whether in the form of a net to catch prey, or a protective cocoon, spiders and caterpillars can create amazing shapes with the help of their spinning threads. To do so, they produce a fluid that hardens into a solid thread when it comes out of the body. In the case of butterflies, the thread is laid around the caterpillar by specific movements of the head and woven into a delicate yet extremely sturdy cocoon. Technical benefits for Festo For the 3D Cocooner, the developers equipped a tripod from the standard Festo range with a special nozzle. With the help of UV-curing resin, it spins a soft glass-fibre thread into complex and equally stable shapes that are very similar to the natural structures. The kinematics receive the necessary control commands directly from the design program in which the three-dimensional shape model is generated.
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