Architected Soft Materials

Frontiers of

Physically Intelligent Robots with

Location: Kanazawa Institute of Technology, Bldg. 23, Room 415

Time: 8:45 am - 12:30 pm, Apr. 11, 2026

9th IEEE-RAS International Conference on Soft Robotics

RoboSoft 2026 Kanazawa

April 7-11, 2026.

Important Dates

Abstract Submission Deadline: February 28 => March 23, 2026 (CST)
Demo Submission Deadline: March 10 => March 23, 2026 (CST)
Notification of Acceptance: by March 5 => by March 25, 2026 (CST)
Poster Submission Deadline: March 25 => by March 31, 2026 (CST)
Workshop Day: April 11, 2026 (8:45 am to 12:30 pm, JST)

Call for Contributions

Abstracts (Posters)

We invite participants to submit an extended abstract of 1-page (+ reference page) in A4 PDF format, in an IEEE conference paper layout.

Demos

We also invite participants to demonstrate their hardware, including soft sensors, soft actuators, soft robotic hands, soft grippers, and soft mobile robots, etc.

Call for Contributions

E. Oh, T. Kim, P. Kaarthik et al. Architected Materials for Soft Robotics. J. Mater. Res. (2026).

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1557/s43578-025-01778-2

Abstract

Recent advances in architected soft materials, such as auxetics, origami, kirigami, and lattices, are transforming the way robots sense, actuate, and interact with the physical world. By embedding intelligence directly within their morphology, these materials enable a new paradigm of Physical AI, where robots can autonomously deform, store energy, and respond to stimuli without heavy computational control.

Our half-day workshop will gather researchers from soft robotics, additive manufacturing, materials science, and robot design to explore how geometric design at the material level can endow robots with physical intelligence. In particular, we will focus on how to bridge material-level intelligence and system-level embodiment: how architected soft materials can be harnessed to build physically intelligent robotic systems that truly move, sense, and interact in the real world.

Objectives

The goal of this half-day workshop is to provide a forum for discussing how architected soft materials can advance physically intelligent robotic systems. Specifically, it will:

Highlight cutting-edge examples where architected soft materials are implemented in real robotic systems, including locomotion, manipulation, and wearable robots.
Discuss recent advances in the design and fabrication of architected soft materials across scales, from micro-structured lattices to macroscale deployable systems.
Explore integration strategies to embed these materials in robotic actuators, sensors, skins, and structural components.
Explore closed-loop control and learning frameworks that leverage material-level intelligence.
Identify key challenges and performance metrics, such as energy efficiency, robustness, and adaptability.
Encourage interdisciplinary dialogue among robotics, materials science, mechanical engineering, and design communities.

By addressing these objectives, the workshop will help define future research directions at the intersection of architected soft materials and physically intelligent robotics.

Invited Speakers