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About

Erik Jung is a pioneering roboticist whose work sits at the intersection of bio-inspired design and soft robotics, with a primary focus on tensegrity structures—systems composed of isolated compression elements held together by a continuous tension network. His most significant contribution is the development of the first fully actuated modular spherical tensegrity robot, detailed in his highly cited 2017 paper (101 citations), which demonstrated how rod-centered actuation could enable robust locomotion and manipulation for co-robotic and space exploration applications. Jung has also made critical advances in biomechanical modeling, creating tensegrity-based flexural joints that more accurately replicate the internal flexibility of human knees, hips, and shoulders—moving beyond traditional revolute joint approximations. His work on a bio-inspired tensegrity shoulder simulator (2016, 21 citations) and a flexible-rigid leg mechanism (2021) further showcases his commitment to bridging the gap between biological compliance and engineered robotics. With over 190 total citations across his core publications, Jung is recognized for fundamentally rethinking how robots can achieve the resilience, adaptability, and safety inherent in biological systems, positioning tensegrity as a transformative paradigm for next-generation soft robotics.