Articles | Volume 17, issue 1
https://doi.org/10.5194/ms-17-313-2026
https://doi.org/10.5194/ms-17-313-2026
Review article
 | 
25 Mar 2026
Review article |  | 25 Mar 2026

Review article: A review of control technologies for soft robots: from structural design to intelligent control

Huijun Yu, Min Lv, Bin Hu, Yang Zhang, and Pengyuan Zhao

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Short summary
Soft robots promise healthcare and exploration gains, but nonlinear ever-bending bodies defy control. This paper reviews recent advances in diverse structures and actuation mechanisms, modeling approaches integrating classical and modern techniques, trajectory planning balancing obstacle avoidance and optimization, and control strategies covering both model-based and model-free methods. Future work must overcome bottlenecks such as low actuation efficiency and poor real-time performance.
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