The research was attempted to mimic the locomotion of the salamander, which is found to be one of the main animals from an evolutionary point of view. The design of the limb and body was started with the parametric studies of pneumatic network (Pneu-Net). Pneu-Net is a pneumatically operated soft actuator that bends when compressed fluid is passed inside the chamber. Finite Element Analysis software, ANSYS, was used to evaluate the height of the chamber, number of chambers and the gap between chambers for both limb and body of the soft mechanism. The parameters were decided based on the force generated by the soft actuators. The assembly of the salamander robot was then exported to MATLAB for simulating the locomotion of the robot in a physical environment. Sine-based controller was used to simulate the robot model and the fastest locomotion of the salamander robot was identified at 1 Hz frequency, 0.3 second of signal delay for limb actuator and negative π phase difference for every contralateral side of the limbs. Shin-Etsu KE-1603, a hyper elastic material, was used to build the salamander robot and a series of experiments were conducted to record the bending angle, the respective generated force in soft actuators and the gait speed of the robot. The developed salamander robot was able to walk at 0.06774 m/s, following an almost identical pattern to the simulation.

Drilled displacement columns, constructed in the form of unreinforced or reinforced concrete elements, are currently a very commonly used method of improving soft subsoil, creating an alternative to more expensive pile foundations. A frequently used solution for improving soft soils of road or railway embankments is to design a regular pattern of columns of relatively small diameter. Columns along the perimeter of the improved area are reinforced with rigid steel profiles, while the internal ones are made as concrete elements. Column heads are usually covered with a load transfer platform (layer of compacted granular fill) which is additionally reinforced with geosynthetics.
The application of soil improvement with displacement columns is not always successful. It is due to the errors and shortcomings occurring at the design stage, including simplifications in modelling, to construction faults, which may include insufficient experience of contractors and/or improper supervision.
Referring to the real object that failed, the article provides the results of numerical parametric analyses taking into account the influence of the key design parameters such as: the stiffness of the load transfer layers, the amount and stiffness of the geosynthetic reinforcement as well as the column spacing. The article presents comparisons of numerical results obtained with the finite element analyses for various approaches to geometry modelling (axisymmetric, 2D and 3D). The simulations indicate that the use of the axisymmetric model of a single column in routine design may lead to the deformations exceeding the serviceability limit states.