Data and Code for "Peripheral Control Enabled by Distributed Sensing in an Octopus-Inspired Soft Robotic Arm for Autonomous Underwater Grasping"

This collection is intended as supplementary material for the paper: Peripheral Control Enabled by Distributed Sensing in an Octopus-Inspired Soft Robotic Arm for Autonomous Underwater Grasping Abstract: Octopuses exhibit remarkable motor dexterity through distributed sensing and control in their flexible arms. Inspired by this biological model, we present a tendon-driven soft robotic arm featuring optoelectronic mechanosensors embedded in suction cups and a hierarchical behavior-based control architecture. Each artificial sucker integrates LEDs and phototransistors to detect contact force and direction via light reflection, achieving high sensitivity (~400 mV/N in the 0-2 N range) and directional accuracy (error < 18°). The sensors operate reliably in dry and wet environments with minimal drift and hysteresis. Their compact, modular design facilitates system integration. The hierarchical control architecture enables local reflexes at the suction cup level and global coordination for autonomous grasping. The system reliably detects contact events, estimates force and direction, and infers object position relative to the arm, enabling purposeful interaction. This work advances sensor-integrated soft robotics, demonstrating the potential of biologically inspired designs for adaptive grasping in unstructured environments. The collection contains: The code for the microcontrollers enclosed in the soft robotic arms to enable embedded autonomous control The electronic boards designs The soft robotic arm CAD design The CAD design for the sensorized suction cups The excel files with data collected from the characterization tests The full paper and supplementary videos are available from DOI: 10.1038/s42256-026-01230-y