抄録
This paper describes hydrophobic wire legs for water-walking robots inspired by a water strider. Recently, many researchers developed bio-inspired water-walking robots. However, the supporting legs of these robots are inferior to those of water striders in water repellency. In this study, helical grooves with various depths and widths were fabricated on the surface of a brass wire using femtosecond laser machining to increase water repellency. Effects of the grooves on contact angles, lift forces, pull-off forces and thrust forces were investigated. The experimental results show that the wire with deep grooves has a high contact angle and a low pull-off force. The lift force was almost constant if the contact angle was larger than 90 degrees. Large thrust forces were obtained when the leg was deeply pressed on water without breaking the water surface.
