English
In recent years, the rise of soft robots has driven significant developments in smart materials (and vice versa), as these materials are able to provide embodied intelligence, enabling more compact robot designs. Hydrogels have long been considered one of the potential candidates for soft robots because they are soft, flexible, and can be intelligently adjusted by nanomaterials. Today, however, they make up only a small fraction of the materials used in the field. From this perspective, this paper analyzes the shortcomings that have so far hindered their application, as well as the current status of hydrogel-based soft actuators, sensors, and manufacturing possibilities. This paper also discusses future improvements that need to be made to achieve practical applications of hydrogels in soft robots.
