Gravish lab

J = Journal articles (61) C = Peer-reviewed conference proceedings (25) B = Book chapters(1)

2025

J 87. Active contacts control sliding friction. R Shah, N Gravish. 2025. (In Review). PREPRINT:

C 86. Autonomous Burrowing and Retrieval of Soft Robotic Anchors in Granular Media. D Li, M Tolley, N Gravish. IEEE RoboSoft 2025. 2025.

J 85. Burrowing and unburrowing in submerged granular media through fluidization and shape-change. A Nayak, H Seo, N Gravish, M Tolley. 2025. (In Review).

J 84. Grasping and Rolling In-plane Manipulation Using Deployable Tape spring Appendages. G He, C Sparks, N Gravish. 2025. (In Review). PREPRINT:

2024

J 83. Moth resonant mechanics are tuned to wingbeat frequency and energetic demands. E Wold, B Aiello, M Harris, U Bin Sikander, J Lynch, N Gravish, S Sponberg. Proceedings. Biological Sciences. 2024. PDF: LINK:

J 82. Stability and agility trade-offs in spring-wing systems. J Lynch, E Wold, J Gau, N Gravish. Bioinspiration & Biomimetics. 2024. PDF: LINK:

J 81. Multi-modal Locomotion in a Soft Robot through Hierarchical Actuation. Q Yu, N Gravish. Soft Robotics. 2024. PDF: LINK:

J 80. A reconfigurable soft linkage robot via internal virtual joints. M Jiang, J Wang, N Gravish. Soft Robotics. 2024. PDF: LINK:

C 79. JAMJams: Jagged Anisotropic Mechanically Jamming Appendages for Robot Locomotion. I Widjaja, N Gravish. IEEE RoboSoft. 2024. PDF: LINK:

C 78. Pressure Control of Rolling-Seal Tape Spring Actuators. C Sparks, N Gravish. IEEE RoboSoft 2024. 2024. PDF: LINK:

C 77. Paint-A-Pouch: Mask-Based Fabrication of Pouch Actuators for Pneumatically Actuated Soft Robots. S Zhang, J Bahn, N Gravish. IEEE RoboSoft 2024. 2024. PDF: LINK:

2023

J 76. Bridging two insect flight modes in evolution, physiology and robophysics. J Gau, J Lynch, B Aiello, E Wold, N Gravish, S Sponberg. Nature. 2023. PDF: LINK:

J 75. Structural damping renders the insect exoskeleton mechanically insensitive to non-sinusoidal deformations. E Wold, J Lynch, N Gravish, S Sponberg. J. Roy. Soc. Interface. 2023. PDF: LINK: PREPRINT:

J 74. Scalable fluidic matrix circuits for controlling large arrays of individually addressable actuators. S Jadhav, P Glick, M Ishida, C Chan, I Abidnazari, J Shulze, N Gravish, M Tolley. Advanced Intelligent Systems. 2023. PDF: LINK:

J 73. Toward Robotic Sensing and Swimming in Granular Environments using Underactuated Appendages. S Chopra, D Vasile, S Jadhav, M Tolley, N Gravish. Advanced Intelligent Systems. 2023. PDF: LINK:

J 72. Going against the flow: Bumblebees prefer to fly in headwinds, and display more variable body angles and ground speeds in tailwinds. S Combes, N Gravish, S Gagliardi. Journal of Experimental Biology. 2023. PDF: LINK:

J 71. The bumpy road ahead: The role of terrain roughness on animal walking, and where to go from here. G Clifton, A Stark, C Li, N Gravish. Journal of Experimental Biology. 2023. PDF: LINK:

C 70. Continuous Skin Eversion Enables an Untethered Soft Robot to Burrow in Granular Media. K Eken, N Gravish, M Tolley. IEEE RoboSoft. 2023. PDF: LINK:

J 69. Directionally Compliant Legs Enable Crevasse Traversal in Small Ground-based Robots. E Lathrop, M Tolley, N Gravish. Advanced Intelligent Systems. 2023. PDF: LINK:

2022

C 68. Amoeba-inspired swimming through isoperimetric modulation of body shape. C Sparks, N Justus, R Hatton, N Gravish. IROS. 2022. PDF: LINK:

J 67. Walking is like slithering: a unifying, data-driven view of locomotion. D Zhao, G Clifton, B Bittner, N Gravish, S Revzen. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 2022. PDF: LINK:

J 66. Soft Molds with Micro-Machined Internal Skeletons Improve Robustness of Flapping-Wing Robots. H Gao, J Lynch, N Gravish. Micromachines. 2022. PDF: LINK:

C 65. Compliant thorax design for robustness and elastic energy exchange in flapping-wing robots. H Gao, J Lynch, N Gravish. IEEE Intelligent Robots and Systems (IROS). 2022. PDF: LINK:

J 64. The hawkmoth wingbeat is not at resonance. J Gau, J Lynch, N Gravish, S Sponberg. Biology Letters. 2022. PDF: LINK:

J 63. Lateral contact yields longitudinal cohesion in active undulatory systems. W Zhou, J Dezha-Peralta, Z Hao, N Gravish. Physical Review E. 2022. PDF: LINK: PREPRINT:

C 62. Autonomous actuation of flapping wing robots inspired by asynchronous insect muscle. J Lynch, J Gau, S Sponberg, N Gravish. IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation (ICRA). 2022. PDF: LINK:

C 61. Anisotropic Forces for a Worm-Inspired Digging Robot. D Drotman, S Chopra, N Gravish, M Tolley. IEEE RoboSoft. 2022. PDF: LINK:

J 60. Proprioceptive feedback design for gait synchronization in collective undulatory robots. Z Hao, W Zhou, N Gravish. Advanced Robotics. 2022. PDF: LINK:

2021

J 59. Collective synchronization of undulatory movement through contact. W Zhou, Hao, Z, N Gravish. Physical Review X. 2021. PDF: LINK: PREPRINT:

C 58. Synchronized swimming: adaptive gait synchronization through mechanical interactions instead of communication. Z Hao, W Zhou, N Gravish. Adaptive Motion in Animals and Machines. 2021. (Honorable mention for outstanding poster). PDF: POSTER:

C 57. Mechanical and actuation asymmetry in soft appendages leads to robotic propulsion in granular media. S Chopra, S Jadhav, MT Tolley, N Gravish. Adaptive Motion in Animals and Machines. 2021. PDF: POSTER:

C 56. Emergent wingstroke in asynchronous insects and robots is governedby time-delayed strain rate feedback. J Lynch, J Gau, S Sponberg, N Gravish. Adaptive Motion in Animals and Machines. 2021. PDF: POSTER:

J 55. Anisotropic compliance of robot legs improves recovery from swing-phase collisions. H Chang, J Chang, G Clifton, N Gravish. Bioinspiration & Biomimetics. 2021. PDF: LINK:

J 54. Rapid frequency modulation in a resonant system: aerial perturbation recovery in hawkmoths. J Gau, R Gemilere, LDS-VIP team, J Lynch, N Gravish, S Sponberg. Proceedings of the Royal Society B. 2021. PDF: LINK:

J 53. Gas-Lubricated Vibration-Based Adhesion For Robotics. WP Weston-Dawkes, M Everman, A Sanchez, N Gravish, M Tolley. Advanced Intelligent Systems. 2021. PDF: LINK:

J 52. Bio-inspired geotechnical engineering: principles, current work, opportunities and challenges. Martinez, A., DeJong, J., ..., Gravish, N., ..., Zheng, Junxing, (Author list in alphabetical order after two first authors). Géotechnique. 2021. PDF: LINK:

J 51. Flexoskeleton Fingers: 3D Printed Reconfigurable Ridges Enabling Multi-functional and Low-cost Underactuated Grasping. Q Yu, M Jiang, N Gravish. IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters. 2021. (Best paper nominee IEEE RoboSoft 2021). PDF: LINK:

C 50. Vacuum induced tube pinching enables reconfigurable flexure joints with controllable bend axis and stiffness. M Jiang, Q Yu, N Gravish. IEEE RoboSoft. 2021. PDF: LINK:

J 49. Reconfigurable laminates enable multi-functional robotic building blocks. M Jiang, N Gravish. Smart Materials and Structures. 2021. PDF: LINK:

J 48. Dimensional analysis of spring-wing systems reveals performance metrics for resonant flapping-wing flight. J Lynch, J Gau, S Sponberg, N Gravish. Journal of The Royal Society Interface. 2021. PDF: PREPRINT: SUPPLEMENTARY:

2020

J 47. Vision does not impact walking performance in Argentine ants. G Clifton, D Holway, N Gravish. Journal of Experimental Biology. 2020. PDF: LINK: PREPRINT:

C 46. Knuckles that buckle: compliant underactuated limbs with joint hysteresis enable minimalist terrestrial robots. M Jiang, S Rongzichen, N Gravish. Intelligent Robots and Systems (IROS). 2020. PDF: LINK:

C 45. Soft Microrobotic Transmissions Enable Rapid Ground-Based Locomotion. W Zhou, N Gravish. Intelligent Robots and Systems (IROS). 2020. PDF: LINK:

J 44. Rapid two-anchor crawling from a milliscale prismatic-push-pull (3P) robot. W Zhou, N Gravish. Bioinspiration and Biomimetics. 2020. PDF: LINK:

C 43. Shear Strengthened Granular Jamming Feet for Improved Performance over Natural Terrain. E Lathrop, I Adibnazari, N Gravish, M Tolley. IEEE RoboSoft Conference. 2020. PDF: LINK:

J 42. Granular Jamming Feet Enable Improved Foot-Ground Interactions for Robot Mobility on Deformable Ground. S Chopra, M Tolley, N Gravish. IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters. 2020. PDF: LINK:

J 41. Flexoskeleton printing enables versatile fabrication of hybrid soft and rigid robots. M Jiang, Z Zhou, N Gravish. Soft Robotics. 2020. PDF: LINK:

J 40. Uneven substrates constrain walking speed in ants through modulation of stride frequency more than stride length. G Clifton, D Holway, N Gravish. Royal Society Open Science. 2020. PDF: LINK:

2019

J 39. Indirect actuation reduces flight power requirements in Manduca sexta via elastic energy exchange. J Gau, N Gravish, S Sponberg. Journal of The Royal Society Interface. 2019. PDF: LINK: PREPRINT:

J 38. Impact of Slope on Dynamics of Running and Climbing. J M Brown, D Peterson, J Schmitt, N Gravish, JE Clark. Bioinspiration and Biomimetics. 2019. PDF: LINK:

C 37. Rapid prototyping of insect-exoskeleton inspired robots. M Jiang, N Gravish. Adaptive Motion in Animals and Machines. 2019. PDF:

J 36. Piezoelectric actuators with on-board sensing for micro-robotic applications. S Chopra, N Gravish. Smart Materials and Structures. 2019. PDF: LINK:

J 35. Soft Robot Actuation Strategies for Locomotion in Granular Substrates. D Ortiz, N Gravish, M Tolley. IEEE Robotics and Automation Letters. 2019. PDF: LINK:

2018

C 34. Sliding-layer laminates: a robotic material enabling robust and adaptable undulatory locomotion. M Jiang, N Gravish. Intelligent Robots and Systems (IROS). 2018. PDF: LINK: VIDEO:

J 33. Spatial fidelity of workers predicts collective response to disturbance in a social insect. JD Crall, N Gravish, AM Mountcastle, SD Kocher, RL Oppenheimer, NE Pierce, SA Combes. Nature Communications. 2018. PDF: LINK:

J 32. Robotics-inspired biology. N Gravish, G Lauder. Journal of Experimental Biology. 2018. PDF: LINK:

2017

C 31. An Actuated Gaze Stabilization Platform for a Flapping-Wing Microrobot. S Mange, EF Helbling, N Gravish, RJ Wood. IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation (ICRA). 2017. PDF: LINK:

J 30. Wings as impellers: honey bees co-opt flight system to induce nest ventilation and disperse pheromones. JM Peters, N Gravish, SA Combes. Journal of Experimental Biology. 2017. PDF:

J 29. A biologically inspired, flapping wing, hybrid aerial-aquatic microrobot. Y Chen, H Wang, EF Helbling, N Jafferis, R Zufferey, A Ong, K Ma, N Gravish, P Chirarattananon, M Kovac, RJ Wood. Science Robotics. 2017. PDF: LINK:

2016

J 28. Experimental and computational studies of the aerodynamic performance of a flapping and passively rotating insect wing. Y Chen, N Gravish, AL Desbiens, R Malka, RJ Wood. Journal of Fluid Mechanics. 2016. PDF: LINK:

B 27. Entangled Granular Media. N Gravish, DI Goldman. Fluids, Colloids, and Soft Materials: An Introduction to Soft Matter Physics. 2016. LINK:

C 26. Anomalous yaw torque generation from passively pitching wings. N Gravish, RJ Wood. IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation (ICRA). 2016. PDF: LINK:

2015

C 25. Hybrid aerial and aquatic locomotion in an at-scale robotic insect. Y Chen, EF Helbling, N Gravish, K Ma, RJ Wood. Intelligent Robots and Systems (IROS), 2015 IEEE/RSJ International Conference on. 2015. PDF: LINK:

J 24. Glass-like dynamics in confined and congested ant traffic. N Gravish, G Gold, A Zangwill, MAD Goodisman, DI Goldman. Soft matter. 2015. PDF: LINK:

J 23. Collective Flow Enhancement by Tandem Flapping Wings. N Gravish, JM Peters, SA Combes, RJ Wood. Physical review letters. 2015. PDF: LINK:

J 22. Behavioral and mechanical determinants of collective subsurface nest excavation. D Monaenkova, N Gravish, G Rodriguez, R Kutner, MAD Goodisman, DI Goldman. Journal of Experimental Biology. 2015. PDF: LINK:

J 21. BEEtag: a low-cost, image-based tracking system for the study of animal behavior and locomotion. JD Crall, N Gravish, AM Mountcastle, SA Combes. PloS one. 2015. PDF: LINK: CODE:

2014

J 20. Sidewinding with minimal slip: Snake and robot ascent of sandy slopes. H Marvi, C Gong, N Gravish, H Astley, M Travers, RL Hatton, JR Mendelson, H Choset, DL Hu, DI Goldman. Science. 2014. PDF: LINK:

C 19. High-throughput study of flapping wing aerodynamics for biological and robotic applications. N Gravish, Y Chen, SA Combes, RJ Wood. 2014 IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems. 2014. PDF: LINK:

J 18. Force and flow at the onset of drag in plowed granular media. N Gravish, PB Umbanhowar, DI Goldman. Physical Review E. 2014. PDF: LINK:

J 17. Effect of volume fraction on granular avalanche dynamics. N Gravish, DI Goldman. Physical Review E. 2014. PDF: LINK:

C 16. A bio-inspired wing driver for the study of insect-scale flight aerodynamics. N Gravish, S Combes, RJ Wood. Conference on Biomimetic and Biohybrid Systems. 2014. PDF: LINK:

2013

J 15. Climbing, falling, and jamming during ant locomotion in confined environments. N Gravish, D Monaenkova, MAD Goodisman, DI Goldman. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 2013. PDF: LINK:

2012

C 14. Towards a terramechanics for bio-inspired locomotion in granular environments. C Li, Y Ding, N Gravish, RD Maladen, A Masse, PB Umbanhowar, H Komsuoglu, DE Koditschek, DI Goldman. Earth and Space 2012: Engineering, Science, Construction, and Operations in Challenging Environments. 2012. LINK:

J 13. Entangled granular media. N Gravish, SV Franklin, DL Hu, DI Goldman. Physical review letters. 2012. PDF: LINK:

J 12. Effects of worker size on the dynamics of fire ant tunnel construction. N Gravish, M Garcia, N Mazouchova, L Levy, PB Umbanhowar, MAD Goodisman, DI Goldman. Journal of The Royal Society Interface. 2012. PDF: LINK:

C 11. Comparative studies reveal principles of movement on and within granular media. Y Ding, N Gravish, C Li, RD Maladen, N Mazouchova, SS Sharpe, PB Umbanhowar, DI Goldman. Natural Locomotion in Fluids and on Surfaces. 2012. LINK:

2011

J 10. Drag induced lift in granular media. Y Ding, N Gravish, DI Goldman. Physical Review Letters. 2011. PDF: LINK:

2010

J 9. Utilization of granular solidification during terrestrial locomotion of hatchling sea turtles. N Mazouchova, N Gravish, A Savu, DI Goldman. Biology letters. 2010. PDF: LINK:

J 8. Rate-dependent frictional adhesion in natural and synthetic gecko setae. N Gravish, M Wilkinson, S Sponberg, A Parness, N Esparza, D Soto, T Yamaguchi, M Broide, M Cutkosky, C Creton. Journal of the royal society interface. 2010. PDF: LINK:

J 7. Force and flow transition in plowed granular media. N Gravish, PB Umbanhowar, DI Goldman. Physical review letters. 2010. PDF: LINK:

2009

J 6. The crowding model as a tool to understand and fabricate gecko-inspired dry adhesives. NS Pesika, N Gravish, M Wilkinson, B Zhao, H Zeng, Y Tian, J Israelachvili, K Autumn. The Journal of Adhesion. 2009. PDF: LINK:

J 5. A microfabricated wedge-shaped adhesive array displaying gecko-like dynamic adhesion, directionality and long lifetime. A Parness, D Soto, N Esparza, N Gravish, M Wilkinson, K Autumn, M Cutkosky. Journal of the Royal Society Interface. 2009. PDF: LINK:

2008

J 4. Microscopic Modeling of the Dynamics of Frictional Adhesion in the Gecko Attachment System. T Yamaguchi, N Gravish, K Autumn, C Creton. The Journal of Physical Chemistry B. 2008. PDF: LINK:

J 3. Frictional and elastic energy in gecko adhesive detachment. N Gravish, M Wilkinson, K Autumn. Journal of The Royal Society Interface. 2008. PDF: LINK:

2006

J 2. High friction from a stiff polymer using microfiber arrays. C Majidi, RE Groff, Y Maeno, B Schubert, S Baek, B Bush, R Maboudian, N Gravish, M Wilkinson, K Autumn. Physical review letters. 2006. PDF: LINK:

0001

J 1. The Weis-Fogh number describes resonant performance tradeoffs in flapping insects. E Wold, E Liu, J Lynch, N Gravish, S Sponberg. Bioinspiration & Biomimetics. 1. PDF: LINK: