Emulating Snake Locomotion: A Bioinspired Continuum Robot with Decoupled Symmetric Control

Inspired by the musculoskeletal structure of snakes, this study proposes a cable-driven continuum robotic system, comprising a dual-segment continuum arm and a linear feeding module. The continuum arm provides four joint degrees of freedom through coordinated cable actuation for snake-like bending, while the feeding module enables linear translation along the Z-axis, resulting in a total of five degrees of freedom. A constant-curvature kinematic model is developed, and a real-time inverse kinematics solution based on fifth-order Taylor expansion is proposed. To enhance postural stability, a master–slave teleoperation control framework is implemented that decouples translational motion from orientation control. Leveraging the geometric symmetry of its dual-segment design, the system achieves consistent end-effector orientation by coordinating bending angles and rotation directions between segments. Simulation and experimental results validate the accuracy of the kinematic model and demonstrate the robot’s capability for dexterous, stable movements in confined environments. The proposed continuum robot offers high positioning accuracy, structural adaptability, and strong potential for bioinspired applications in endoscopy and minimally invasive surgical procedures.