About

Vito Cacucciolo is a pioneering researcher at the forefront of soft robotics, stretchable electronics, and bio-inspired robotic systems. His work has fundamentally advanced our understanding of how compliant, flexible materials can be harnessed to create robots capable of sophisticated, lifelike behaviors — from gripping delicate objects to swimming and crawling through constrained environments. Cacucciolo's most celebrated contribution is his comprehensive review of soft robotic grippers (2018), which has amassed an extraordinary 1,850 citations and become a defining reference in the field. His influential work on stiffness control in soft robotics (613 citations) and the development of dielectric elastomer actuators has pushed the boundaries of what lightweight, autonomous robots can achieve — including a remarkable sub-gram, untethered robotic insect (518 citations) and a biomimetic fish robot. His stretchable pump technology (445 citations) opened new avenues for self-contained, fluid-driven soft machines without rigid components. Beyond locomotion, Cacucciolo has made meaningful contributions to soft force sensing, electroadhesion grippers, and printable robotic systems. Collectively, his publications have accumulated thousands of citations, reflecting both the breadth and depth of his impact on a research community reimagining the future of human-robot interaction and wearable robotics.

Research Focus

Key Achievements

14
H-Index
23
Papers
4,310
Total Citations
187
Avg Citations/Paper
🏆 Most Cited Paper
Soft Robotic Grippers
1,850 citations · 2018
📈 Most Prolific Year: 2017 (5 Papers)
🤝 Key Collaborators: 47
🏛 Institutions: École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Scuola Superiore Sant'Anna, Applied Microengineering Limited (United Kingdom), Center for Micro-BioRobotics, Piaggio (Italy), Polytechnic University of Bari

Top Papers

  1. 1
    Soft Robotic Grippers
    1,850 citations · 2018
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  7. 7
    Shielded soft force sensors
    84 citations · 2022
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Key Collaborators

Contact & Links

Available for collaboration
Content generated · 14 days ago