AUTHOR=Kemsaram Narsimlu , Hardwick James , Wang Jincheng , Gautam Bonot , Besevli Ceylan , Christopoulos Giorgos , Dogra Sourabh , Gao Lei , Delibasi Akin , Plasencia Diego Martinez , Georgiou Orestis , Obrist Marianna , Hirayama Ryuji , Subramanian Sriram 

TITLE=AcoustoBots: A swarm of robots for acoustophoretic multimodal interactions

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Robotics and AI

VOLUME=Volume 12 - 2025

YEAR=2025

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/robotics-and-ai/articles/10.3389/frobt.2025.1537101

DOI=10.3389/frobt.2025.1537101

ISSN=2296-9144

ABSTRACT=IntroductionAcoustophoresis has enabled novel interaction capabilities, such as levitation, volumetric displays, mid-air haptic feedback, and directional sound generation, to open new forms of multimodal interactions. However, its traditional implementation as a singular static unit limits its dynamic range and application versatility.MethodsThis paper introduces “AcoustoBots” — a novel convergence of acoustophoresis with a movable and reconfigurable phased array of transducers for enhanced application versatility. We mount a phased array of transducers on a swarm of robots to harness the benefits of multiple mobile acoustophoretic units. This offers a more flexible and interactive platform that enables a swarm of acoustophoretic multimodal interactions. Our novel AcoustoBots design includes a hinge actuation system that controls the orientation of the mounted phased array of transducers to achieve high flexibility in a swarm of acoustophoretic multimodal interactions. In addition, we designed a BeadDispenserBot that can deliver particles to trapping locations, which automates the acoustic levitation interaction.ResultsThese attributes allow AcoustoBots to independently work for a common cause and interchange between modalities, allowing for novel augmentations (e.g., a swarm of haptics, audio, and levitation) and bilateral interactions with users in an expanded interaction area.DiscussionWe detail our design considerations, challenges, and methodological approach to extend acoustophoretic central control in distributed settings. This work demonstrates a scalable acoustic control framework with two mobile robots, laying the groundwork for future deployment in larger robotic swarms. Finally, we characterize the performance of our AcoustoBots and explore the potential interactive scenarios they can enable.