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This paper presents the kinematic analysis of a continuum bionic robot with three flexible actuation rods. Since the motion of the end-effector is actuated by the deformation of the rods, the robot structure is with high elasticity and good compliance and the kinematic analysis of the robot requires special treatment. We propose a kinematic model based on the geometry with constant curvature. The analysis consists of two independent mappings: a general mapping for the kinematics of all robots and a specific mapping for this kind of robots. Both of those mappings are developed for the single section and for the multisections. We aim at providing a guide for kinematic analysis of the similar manipulators through this paper.

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Continuum robots, often taking inspiration from biomimetics, are an exciting novel research field and have a great capability. New continuum robots can be inspired by biologies such as seahorses, pipefish, and pipehorses, which have both strong skeleton and great dexterity. In this paper, the main idea contained is how to effectively employ the square components, which aim to imitate the armor and to connect the square components with the ball pairs and soft surface. For displaying the dexterity features of the square continuum robot (SCR), both the bending and twisting capabilities were studied. Meanwhile, a comparison was also considered in order to validate and analyze the dexterity differences in the numerical model, skeleton prototype, and SCR. The static characters of the SCR were shown both numerically and experimentally so that the mechanical properties are clear. Then, impact experiments were carried out to demonstrate the cushion effect. In addition, the maximum grasping load was also determined to quantize the grasping capability. Finally, a robot system was developed to handle objects with various shapes. Our results reveal that the SCR connected by the soft surface has improved flexibility, cushion stability, and better-grasping capability, with some loss of dexterity compared to SCR's skeleton. INDEX TERMS Square continuum robot, bionic soft robotics, dexterity control, grasping capability.