Turns out robot maker Festo did more than just dream about robot tentacle arms; they instantiated their idea, using elephant trunks as their model. Take a look at this demonstration video.
(Festo Bionic Arm)
I was also fascinated by the fabrication process, which creates lightweight, flexible and energy-efficient robotic manipulators.
Festo has been very creative in the last few years; take a look at some of their work:
Festo Aqua Ray Robot
Aqua_ray is a remote-controlled fish driven by water hydraulics, the shape and movements of which have been based on the model of a manta ray.
Robot Arm With Fluidic Muscles
The company describes it as a "combination of mechatronics and the biological model of a human being."
Humanoid Robots Building Humanoid Robots
''Pardon me, Struthers,' he broke in suddenly... 'haven't you a section of the factory where only robot labor is employed?'' - Isaac Asimov (1940)
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Humanoid Robots Building Humanoid Robots
''Pardon me, Struthers,' he broke in suddenly... 'haven't you a section of the factory where only robot labor is employed?''
Stratospheric Solar Geoengineering From Harvard
'Pina2bo would have to operate full blast for many years to put as much SO2 into the stratosphere as its namesake had done in a few minutes.'