EPFL is Developing an Elephant Robot Using 3D Printing

Researchers at the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) in Switzerland have introduced an impressively versatile yet lightweight robotic technology: an elephant robot made with 3D printing. The 3D-printable lattice structure is made from simple foam, but it can be precisely programmed to simulate both soft and rigid tissues from a flexible trunk to stiff joints like the hip or knee. True to its name, the adorable elephant robot can, among other things, pick up flowers with its trunk, move like a real elephant, and looks simply cute.

The secret to the robot lies in its so-called cells—tiny units of the lattice whose shapes and positions can vary. The EPFL researchers used two basic models: body-centered cubic (BCC) and the X-cube. By continuously blending these structures and additionally rotating or shifting individual cells, they create an almost infinite range of mechanical properties. A lattice cube with four cells offers about 4 million configurations; with five cells, the number grows to over 75 million. “This approach enables the continuous spatial blending of stiffness profiles and allows for an infinite range of blended unit cells. It’s particularly suited for replicating the structure of muscular organs like an elephant trunk,” said PhD candidate Benhui Dai about the project.

The elephant robot’s trunk can, among other things, grasp a flower.

The Interplay Between Flexible and Rigid Printed Parts

Using this flexibility, the roboticists were able to build a mechanically diverse elephant robot. Certain segments of the trunk consist of spiral, twisting, and bending sections that enable soft, flowing movements, while other parts are deliberately made stiffer, much like bones or tendons. This kind of technology is especially valuable in medical engineering, for example in the manufacturing of prosthetics. Several joint types were replicated: sliding planes (similar to the bones in the foot), uniaxial bends like those in the knee, and complex biaxial movements like toe joints.