Robobats Could Be The Next Generation Of Remote Control Flyers

July 7, 2009 by · Leave a Comment

Nature strikes again with the next model for robots. These small robot flyers imitate bats which are nature’s small flyers.  The potential uses for these little bots are surveillance and search and rescue.  Using the potential for maneuverability and performance that a bat-like robot could provide, these bots have a potential for both military and civilian applications.  Check out the story below for the complete details.

Image Credit:  Science Daily

ScienceDaily (July 7, 2009) — Tiny flying machines can be used for everything from indoor surveillance to exploring collapsed buildings, but simply making smaller versions of planes and helicopters doesn't work very well. Instead, researchers at North Carolina State University are mimicking nature's small flyers – and developing robotic bats that offer increased maneuverability and performance.

Adapted from materials provided by North Carolina State University.

Robo-bats With Metal Muscles May Be Next Generation Of Remote Control Flyers
WWW.OLOSCIENCE.COM (f.intilla@bluewin.ch)
Tue, 07 Jul 2009 17:21:00 GMT

Filed Under: Nature, Robots · Tagged With: , ,

Robotic Grasshopper May Help Explore Mars Surface

July 6, 2009 by · Leave a Comment

This robot can jump like a grasshopper and roll like a tumbleweed.  It is called Jollbot and it may be headed to Mars someday.  Or it may help here on Earth in areas of rough terrain with jobs like surveying.  Going back to an article posted in December, 2008 at PhysOrg.com, the researchers believe this is the first robot that can both jump and roll.  This behavior can solve a problem that robotic explorers on other planets routinely face:  objects that are too large to roll over.  Nature again provides a model to solve a problem and create a new design in robotics.

rolling grasshopper robot

Image Credit:  Nic Delves-Broughton, University of Bath

The Jollbot was masterminded by Rhodri Armour, who spent a year building the robot with colleagues at the University of Bath. The robot, which can jump and roll, enjoys an edge over other machines due to its ability to launch itself over obstacles …

Robotic grasshopper to help explore Mars' rocky geography – New Kerala
Mon, 06 Jul 2009 08:44:00 GMT

Filed Under: Nature, Robots, Space · Tagged With: , , ,

Hummingbird-Like Robot

July 3, 2009 by · Leave a Comment

From rats to hummingbirds, the biological models just keep on coming.  This is another in a long line of nature-modeled robots.  It flaps its wings in the manner of a hummingbird and is built to use a spy for the military.  Its purpose would be to loiter in an area, either indoors or outdoors, and send video of its target.  It would be so small as to be almost undetectable.  Plus, if it looks and acts like a hummingbird, it might be mistaken for the real thing even if it is discovered.  Also, check out the video on YouTube.  And finally, a note to readers, there will be no post for tomorrow, July 4, Independence Day here in the USA.  Please return on Sunday for the Weekend Newswrap.

hummingbird robot 

Image Credit: Forbes.com

AeroVironment, maker of several important military UAVs like the Wasp, Raven, and Dragon Eye , has received a Phase II SBIR grant from DARPA to continue work on it’s hummingbird-like nano UAV (NAV), which propels itself with flapping wings. In the video, the vehicles stability control is shown, including take-offs from a standstill.

“The goals of the NAV program — namely to develop an approximately 10 gram aircraft that can hover for extended periods, can fly at forward speeds up to 10 meters per second, can withstand 2.5 meter per second wind gusts, can operate inside buildings, and have up to a kilometer command and control range — will stretch our understanding of flight at these small sizes and require novel technology development.”

The Phase II contract is worth $2.1 million USD and will continue through the summer of 2010.

[Via Slashdot]

Hummingbird-Like Nano UAV from AeroVironment
William Cox
Thu, 02 Jul 2009 12:18:57 GMT

Filed Under: Military, Nature · Tagged With: , ,

Whiskered Robot Rat For Search and Rescue

July 1, 2009 by · Leave a Comment

The SCRATCHbot robot will be demonstrated at an international conference during the week of July 1, 2009. SCRATCH (Spatial Cognition and Representation through Active TouCh) is lauded as the next step in robot intelligence. This is yet another robot based on a biological model.  In this case, the model is a rat. RobotNext has reported on robot rats before in a post on June 7, 2009.  That ratbot was designed to explore how robots could develop a form of intelligent behavior by moving about a room and learning to avoid objects.  It has a vision system, sound sensors, and whiskers.  SCRATCHbot would be able to search out objects using only its whiskers. It was developed by Bristol Robotics Lab.  Read the story in two articles linked to below.

scratchbot

Photo: SWNS

ScienceDaily (June 30, 2009) — A team of scientists have developed an innovative robot rat which can seek out and identify objects using its whiskers. …

Researchers Unveil Whiskered Robot Rat
Science Daily (press release) – USA
Tue, 30 Jun 2009 23:29:03 GMT

Dr Tony Pipe, deputy director of the Bristol Robotics Laboratory, believes 'Scratchbot' could revolutionise the way use robotics in search and rescue missions…

Robotic rat can search for disaster survivors using whiskers
Wed, 01 Jul 2009 21:42:32 GMT

Filed Under: Nature, Robots · Tagged With: , , ,

Robot Imitates Swimming Motion of Living Jellyfish

June 26, 2009 by · Leave a Comment

Nature continues to supply models for robots.  RobotNext found this article on robot jellyfish.  Many robot builders are modeling every type of motion nature provides.  Jellyfish use a unique swimming motion to achieve their flowing, pulsing motion. 

So now to the basic story.  Two Korean researchers have developed a robot that swims like a jellyfish.  Engineers Sung-Weon Yeom and Il-Kwon Oh from Chonnam National University in the Republic of Korea explain in an article at PhysOrg.com that "Jellyfish are one of the most awesome marine animals, doing a spectacular and psychedelic dance in water."  A special type of polymer that imitates muscle movement was used in the design of this jellyfish robot.  The article goes on to state that “advances in electro-active polymers (EAP) enabled them to achieve this biomimetic swimming behavior in a robot.”

 jellyfish

Image Credit: Yeom and Oh. (PhysOrg.com)

(Left) A living jellyfish and (right) a jellyfish robot made of electro-active polymer artificial muscle. Both jellyfish move by contracting the bell to generate a pulsating motion.  — "Jellyfish are one of the most …

Sung-Weon Yeom and Il-Kwon Oh. “A biomimetic jellyfish robot based on ionic polymer metal composite actuators.” Smart Mater. Struct. 18 (2009) 085002 (10pp).

Jellyfish Robot Swims Like its Biological Counterpart – PhysOrg
Fri, 26 Jun 2009 15:30:00 GMT

Filed Under: Nature, Robots · Tagged With: , , ,

Bio-Inspired Robotics Laboratory

June 19, 2009 by · Leave a Comment

Robots that are modeled on nature have intrigued me for several months.  This seems like the next major area for breakthroughs in robotics.  Now, I spotted this job placement request on my newsfeed.  Starting in August of 2009, a new laboratory will open at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich, Switzerland.  Fumiya Iida, Dr. sc. nat., will be the director.   His research interest includes biologically inspired robotics, embodied artificial intelligence, and biomechanics.  His research includes robots modeled on cats, dogs, monkeys, and many other nature models.  Look on his website for some great photos of robots that he has built and worked with in his research.

 
Bio-Inspired Robotics Laboratory
(Director: Fumiya Iida)
Institute of Robotics and Intelligent Systems
Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich
(ETH Zurich) Switzerland
http://www.iris.ethz.ch/


Photo Credit:  Fumiya IIDA Dr. sc. nat.

Posdoc/PhD Positions at ETH Zurich, Bio-Inspired Robotics Laboratory
Youngester (noreply@blogger.com)
Fri, 19 Jun 2009 22:45:00 GMT

Filed Under: Nature, Robots · Tagged With: , ,

Robot Animals Help Study Nature

June 18, 2009 by · Leave a Comment

Robots are being dressed up like animals in order to blend in with wildlife and help research their real-life counterparts in nature.  There are robotic birds, bees, and lizards.  RobotNext has many articles on robots that are modeled on nature.  This is a slightly different take in that the robots are imitating nature in order to study the animals. 

robot-bird-470-0709 

Credit:  Popular Science, Illustrations by Bradley R. Hughes

Robots That Dress Like Animals for Science
Popular Mechanics, NY
To better understand animal behavior, scientists are dressing up data-gathering robots in animal garb. By fitting in with their wild, unsuspecting friends, robot bees, turkeys and lizards are recording intimate details of habitats that were never …

Robots That Dress Like Animals for Science – Popular Mechanics
Thu, 18 Jun 2009 13:45:53 GMT

Filed Under: Nature, Robots · Tagged With: , ,

Robotic Ferret to Aid in Searches for Contraband

June 14, 2009 by · Leave a Comment

One more example of a robot design whose idea came form nature.  In this case, a ferret is the basis for the robot.  Ferrets were originally domesticated by humans for hunting.  They could chase the prey into tight spaces.  This is the idea here.  Cargo containers are difficult to search when fully loaded with materials, but there are voids that can be exploited by a device that is small and able to maneuver in close quarters.  Thus, the robot dubbed the ferret.  Check out the story at the photo link or the other links below.

Robot Ferret     Robot Ferret

Image Credit:  Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC)

A new type of robot under development will make it easier to detect drugs, weapons, explosives and illegal immigrants concealed in cargo containers.Dubbed the ‘cargo-screening ferret’ and designed for use at seaports and airports, the device is being worked on at the University of Sheffield with funding from the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC).The ferret will be the world’s first cargo-screening device able to pinpoint all kinds of illicit substances and the first designed to operate inside standard freight containers.It will be equipped with a suite of sensors that are more comprehensive and more sensitive than any currently employed in conventional cargo scanners.Recent advances in both laser and fiber optic technology now make it possible to detect tiny particles of different substances.

Robotic Ferret Can Detect Hidden Drugs, Weapons
Fri, 12 Jun 2009 13:21:37 GMT

Filed Under: Nature, Robots · Tagged With: ,

Fish Robot Models Next Method of Ship Propulsion

June 13, 2009 by · Leave a Comment

Here is the next robot model from nature—a fish.  Here at RobotNext, there have been reports of many types of robots based on nature.  Now, robot fish may be able to demonstrate that the motions of a swimming fish could be used to move ships through the ocean.  If this could be done, it is possible that a eco-friendly propulsion method could be developed for vessels sailing the oceans.  Researchers hope to demonstrate that the swimming robot can provide a way to prevent damage to shorelines and the seabed.  Read more about this development in the article at Science Daily as reported by WWW.OLOSCIENCE.COM  at the links below.

SOURCE

ScienceDaily (June 11, 2009) — The team of Darmstadt researchers analyzed videos of fish’s motions and then developed a prototype fish robot that duplicated them, and are now testing it using the locomotional patterns of various species of fish in order to refine it and improve its efficiency.

Adapted from materials provided by Technische Universität Darmstadt, via AlphaGalileo.

Fish Robot As An Alternative Marine Propulsion System Of The Future
WWW.OLOSCIENCE.COM (f.intilla@bluewin.ch)
Fri, 12 Jun 2009 18:58:00 GMT

Filed Under: Nature, Robots · Tagged With: , , ,

Robot Snail Cleans Windows

June 12, 2009 by · Leave a Comment

In keeping with my search for robots based on nature, here is the window-washing robot based on a snail.  This Japanese group has designed the robot to clean windows and other hard to reach vertical surfaces.  It works by suction forces holding it to the glass or wall.  Of course, it does have a safety cable and the compressor for the robotic snail is on the roof.  You can read more about this at the links below.  Click on the photo for a better view and check out the other photos at JDF.

snailbot

Photo Credit:  JDF

This bot does windows and walls, and any other flat surface a human cannot reach easily. The Snail by Yasunori Goto, Ibe Tommokichi and Hirata Ichiro, climbs and sticks to surfaces with the help of air compression suction. 

Snail Window Cleaning Bot | Robot Snob

Refer to the following for more information:

JDF International Design Contest

Snail Window Cleaning Bot | Robot Snob
Sheila Franklin
Fri, 12 Jun 2009 10:32:16 GMT

Filed Under: Nature, Robots · Tagged With: ,
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