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As vice president of design at Clone, an advanced robotics company that specializes in developing biomimetic and intelligent bionic robots, Wiktoria Kruk’s primary focus is on creating robots that can perform common tasks in daily life. With a background in fine arts, Kruk brings a unique perspective to her work — blending creativity with science to develop robots that not only perform tasks but do so with a sensitivity that mirrors human interaction.
Her focus on creating machines that replicate the human body’s intricacies allows for a new kind of interaction — robots that can move, adapt, and respond with a level of fluidity rarely seen in traditional robotics.
Giving robots human qualities
Robots have been around for a long time and are used to perform a variety of tasks in countless fields and disciplines. However, one criticism is that while they are capable of completing specific tasks, they often do so with a coldness that is devoid of human emotion or feeling. Kruk leads a team of engineers building biomimetic robots designed with material sensitivity.
“We integrate abstract thinking with engineering to create intuitive, user-centered robotic systems,” She explains. “This approach has pushed the boundaries of soft robotics, resulting in simple, aesthetic, and functional designs. The biomimetic robot we design at Clone is unique, with a soft body that enables natural interaction and adaptability.”
Not only can this robot perform important tasks, but it does so in a more sensitive, human way, making it more suitable for interacting in a real-world environment. This creates significant benefits, such as improved user experience and enhanced real-world interactions, for both those working on them and using them.
The creation process
Kruk and her team of biomechanical designers create machines made of parts replicating the human body, such as musculoskeletal systems. They are synthetically made and have features such as bones, muscles, and soft tissues that mimic human function. These machines are known as soft-bodied robots, and they are able to move and interact like humans.
Though progress in this remarkable undertaking is rewarding, a project of this magnitude presents a unique set of obstacles. The primary obstacle lies in copying the design of something as intricate as the human body, like the microscopic fibers forming more extensive structures that have evolved over millions of years.
“The human body is a masterpiece of natural engineering, and translating that complexity into an efficient, synthetic form while maintaining functionality is incredibly challenging,” Kruk says.
The key to successfully conquering this potential pitfall is simplification. Though it may take countless hours of critical thinking to determine the potential and limitations of their building materials, she and her team simplify the process as much as possible without disrupting the creation’s capacity to function within the confines of a robotic system.
She and her team have succeeded by working as a unit. Every component operates interdependently, and when one part fails, other features gradually experience difficulties as well.
“This is precisely how we should continually improve our collaboration while learning to cooperate,” Kruk explains. “We have to work as one organism. In the team, we inspire each other by researching how nature trust principles can drive technological innovation.”
The woman behind the project
Kruk, a native of Poland, spent 12 years working on artistic projects in fine arts geared toward learning how ideas turn into something you can see and feel. Her work in the arts ultimately laid the foundation for her future endeavors with Clone, and she learned to simplify complex systems, identify existing problems, and conjure up the most viable solutions during her time in the industry.
“This led me naturally into Clone, a company dedicated to creating synthetic humans designed fully on the basis of nature’s creation,” Kruk explains. “The alignment between the vision and my research on the intersection of nature and collaboration ignited my desire to be part of a large, complex project.”
Hopes for the future
In the short term, Kruk is excited to see how the public will respond to Clone’s robots. “With humanoid robots at Clone, entering the market will be the ultimate test to observe how individuals interact with these highly aesthetic musculoskeletal androids in their everyday lives,” she says.
Positive public interaction will validate Clone’s work on a personal and professional level, and Kruk believes the implications extend well beyond the company’s laboratory. “This will reveal not only the effectiveness of our designs but the emotional and social dynamics that evolve from their presence,” she continued.
When it comes to long-term aims, Kruk plans to continue studying nature to find answers to questions she and many others have about biomimicry, human-centric engineering, and design and material sensitivity.
“The intricacies of natural systems, refined over billions of years, offer the ultimate blueprint for efficient, sustainable design,” Kruk added.
Using nature as a guiding force, she also hopes to apply her penchant for logical thinking and design to come up with simple solutions to humanity’s problems by combining nature and technology to create a more harmonic and happy world for everyone.
Above all, Kruk wants to continue working alongside people who share her vision for future technological development and unite in the spirit of cooperation. “One of my proudest accomplishments is simply the opportunity to collaborate with turbo-talented inventors, engineers, artists, and researchers,” she said. “Creative minds can overcome any challenge.”
Turning machines into sensitive, adaptive beings proves that.
