  Soft robotics have gained increased attention from the robotic community due
to their unique features such as compliance and human safety. Impressive amount
of soft robotic prototypes have shown their superior performance over their
rigid counter parts in healthcare, rehabilitation, and search and rescue
applications. However, soft robots are yet to capitalize on their potential
outside laboratories and this could be attributed to lack of advanced sensing
capabilities and real-time dynamic models. In this pilot study, we explore the
use of high-accuracy, high-bandwidth deformation sensing via fiber optic strain
sensing (FOSS) in soft bending actuators (SBA). Based on the high density
sensor feedback, we introduce a reduced order kinematic model. Together with
cubic spline interpolation, this model is able to reconstruct the continuous
deformation of SBAs. The kinematic model is extended to derive an efficient
real-time equation of motion and validated against the experimental data.
