Robot feet are crucial for maintaining dynamic stability and propelling the body during walking, especially on uneven terrains. Traditionally, robot feet were mostly designed as flat and stiff pieces of metal, which meets its limitations when the robot is required to step on irregular grounds, e.g., stones. While one could think that adding compliance under such feet would solve the problem, this is not the case. To address this problem, we introduced the SoftFoot, an adaptive foot design that can enhance walking performance over irregular grounds. The proposed design is completely passive and varies its shape and stiffness based on the exerted forces, through a system of pulley, tendons, and springs opportunely placed in the structure. This article outlines the motivation behind the SoftFoot and describes the theoretical model which led to its final design. The proposed system has been experimentally tested and compared with two analogous conventional feet, a rigid one and a compliant one, with similar footprints and soles. The experimental validation focuses on the analysis of the standing performance, measured in terms of the equivalent support surface extension and the compensatory ankle angle, and the rejection of impulsive forces, which is important in events such as stepping on unforeseen obstacles. Results show that the SoftFoot has the largest equivalent support surface when standing on obstacles, and absorbs impulsive loads in a way almost as good as a compliant foot.@en

Compliant mechanisms (CMs), along with soft robotics devices formed therewith, may be defined as engineering systems achieving force and motion transmission via the deflection of flexible members. CMs have increasingly gained a strong foothold in the scientific arena owing to their hinge-less nature, shock resistance, potential single-piece manufacturability, safety in human–machine interaction, minimal maintenance requirements, and adaptability to work in unstructured environments. In parallel, current advances in the production of inherently compliant sensory-motor apparatus, as well as progresses in the development of robust control methods, are paving the way to practical CM adoption in a large variety of engineering fields, here including healthcare, manufacturing, inspection/maintenance, and agrifood.@en