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Soft robots are being increasingly developed and deployed for underwater applications such as exploration, monitoring, and rescue owing to their innate compliance, mechanical and chemical stability, and waterproof properties. However, they are still predominantly manufactured using silicones and acrylic elastomers, which pose environmental risks due to their limited biodegradability. To tackle this issue, a method for manufacturing water‐resistant, liquid‐driven soft actuators made from a novel type of konjac glucomannan (KGM) is presented, which is plant‐derived, insoluble, and edible. The material offers impressive stretchability, reaching up to 67.2% of its initial length, surpassing previous related work, and withstands over a 1000 cycles of tensile stress. Using this material, we develop soft actuators that can bend up to 47.1°, and the maximum blocking force of 0.1 N is achieved with a pressure input of 20 kPa. A gripper that is capable of grasping various objects underwater is also evaluated. In essence, this article introduces a sustainable and environmentally friendly alternative to conventional soft robotic materials, paving the way for innovative and eco‐conscious underwater applications. The utilization of edible, water‐resistant materials like konjac provides a promising solution to reduce pollution and mitigate negative environmental impacts associated with traditional underwater soft robots. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Soft robots are being increasingly developed and deployed for underwater applications such as exploration, monitoring, and rescue owing to their innate compliance, mechanical and chemical stability, and waterproof properties. However, they are still predominantly manufactured using silicones and acrylic elastomers, which pose environmental risks due to their limited biodegradability. To tackle this issue, a method for manufacturing water‐resistant, liquid‐driven soft actuators made from a novel type of konjac glucomannan (KGM) is presented, which is plant‐derived, insoluble, and edible. The material offers impressive stretchability, reaching up to 67.2% of its initial length, surpassing previous related work, and withstands over a 1000 cycles of tensile stress. Using this material, we develop soft actuators that can bend up to 47.1°, and the maximum blocking force of 0.1 N is achieved with a pressure input of 20 kPa. A gripper that is capable of grasping various objects underwater is also evaluated. In essence, this article introduces a sustainable and environmentally friendly alternative to conventional soft robotic materials, paving the way for innovative and eco‐conscious underwater applications. The utilization of edible, water‐resistant materials like konjac provides a promising solution to reduce pollution and mitigate negative environmental impacts associated with traditional underwater soft robots.

The increasing impact of technology disposal and e-waste on the environment has driven robotics scientists to develop more sustainable robots. Biodegradable and edible shape-memory polymer artificial muscles represent an important robotic component that enables environmentally modulated deformation and movement. The need for finer behavioral control of artificial muscles also requires proprioceptive functionality. Here we report the first edible shape-memory oleogel composites that monolithically couple shape-memory actuation and color-change sensing within one material. The shape recovery and color change capabilities were characterized and two sustainable soft robots, a robotic gripper and a biomimetic flower, were constructed to demonstrate their potential for the development of sustainable and edible robotics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]