MIT, Harvard University 和 Seoul National University的研究人员搞出了一种自主蠕动的蚯蚓机器人，这种机器人抗压，耐打，能够像蚯蚓一样拉伸蠕动前行。

也许适合在恶劣环境下打洞探索，不错的仿生机器人，就是看起来有点蚯蚓的感觉，见视频

[flash]http://player.youku.com/player.php/sid/XNDM3ODY5MjQ0/v.swf[/flash]

Earthworms creep along the ground by alternately squeezing and stretching muscles along the length of their bodies, inching forward with each wave of contractions. Snails and sea cucumbers also use this mechanism, called peristalsis, to get around, and our own gastrointestinal tracts operate by a similar action, squeezing muscles along the esophagus to push food to the stomach. 

Now researchers at MIT, Harvard University and Seoul National University have engineered a soft autonomous robot that moves via peristalsis, crawling across surfaces by contracting segments of its body, much like an earthworm. The robot, made almost entirely of soft materials, is remarkably resilient: Even when stepped upon or bludgeoned with a hammer, the robot is able to inch away, unscathed.