Increasing Digging Efficiency Using Two Biologically-Inspired Techniques

The mechanics of digging through granular materials often neglect the inhomogeneities present in granular packings. This work reports on two biologically-inspired mechanisms that aim to increase the efficiency of digging through granular materials by taking advantage of the variety of forces found in granular packings. First, flexible diggers demonstrate that a slight increase in flexibility can lead to more efficient digging using a completely passive mechanism. Secondly, a digger with an actuated tip is investigated to find optimum parameters for energy efficient digging with actuated mechanisms.