Science Fiction
Dictionary
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
 |
Solar-Powered Remote-Control Cockroaches!
I've done remote-controlled cockroach stories before (see HI-MEMS: Cyborg Beetle Microsystem), but these remote-controlled cockroaches have solar power on their side! Not just battery powered.
( Remote-controlled cyborg cockroaches, equipped with
a tiny wireless control module that is powered by a
rechargeable battery attached to a solar cell. )
Researchers have engineered a system for creating remote-controlled cyborg cockroaches, equipped with a tiny wireless control module that is powered by a rechargeable battery attached to a solar cell. Despite the mechanical devices, ultrathin electronics and flexible materials allow the insects to move freely...For the use of cyborg insects to be practical, however, handlers must be able to control them remotely for long stretches of time...
Keeping the battery adequately charged is critical—nobody wants a suddenly out-of-control swarm of cyborg cockroaches roaming around. While docking stations for recharging the battery could be built, the need to return and recharge could disrupt time-sensitive missions. Therefore, an optimum approach is to include an onboard solar cell that can continuously ensure that the battery stays charged.
The University of Michigan developed this in 2006 for DARPA. Called HI-MEMS, it was inspired by a particular science fiction writer!
— Bill Christensen (@Technovelgy) September 9, 2022
References:https://t.co/3harl3Qw5w pic.twitter.com/5wZzGcF6aV
Scientists got the idea for remote-controlled insects from the 1990 science fiction novel Sparrowhawk, by Thomas A. Easton. Dr. Easton, a professor of science at Thomas College. In the novel, he writes about genetically engineered animals that are greatly enlarged, and then outfitted with implanted control structures.
"There's the brain, the spinal chord, the motor centers. A cable, here, from the controller to the interface plug... wires from that to the brain." She explained how the controller, a computer, translated movements of the tiller or control yoke and the throttle and brake pedals into electrical signals and routed them as appropriate to the jets or the genimal's motor centers, triggering the genimal's own nervous system into commanding its muscles to serve the driver. All the necessary programming was built into the hardware...
(Read more about the Roachster)
Why not move your mousing finger down the trackpad, hovering over one of the following articles, then just twitch that forefinger muscle just a bit...
- HI-MEMS: Cyborg Beetle Microsystem
- Spy Moth Cyborg On/Off Switch Perfected
- Radio-Controlled Beetle By UC Berkeley
- Remote-Controlled Cyborg Beetle Video
- Roboroach Slalom Steering Video
- Roboroach Control? There's An App For That
- Roboroach Now Shipping!
- Steerable Locusts Detect Explosives
Scroll down for more stories in the same category. (Story submitted 9/9/2022)
Follow this kind of news @Technovelgy.| Email | RSS | Blog It | Stumble | del.icio.us | Digg | Reddit |
Would
you like to contribute a story tip?
It's easy:
Get the URL of the story, and the related sf author, and add
it here.
Comment/Join discussion ( 0 )
Related News Stories - (" Engineering ")
Thin Film Dome Protects Cities From Nuclear Blasts
'What fabric can take that kind of a load? Synthetic spider silk.' - Robert Heinlein, 1939.
Cyborg Eye Flashlight Lights Up The Room
'Foyle pressed a tooth with his tongue and the peripheral cells of his retina were excited into emitting a soft light.' - Alfred Bester, 1956.
Aeromine Technologies Rooftop Wind Energy
'...a windmill on his roof for light and heat.' - John Jacob Astor IV, 1894.
Roomba Hoovers Up More Than Dirt
'He had brought that tiny instrument to map their movements.' - Jack Williamson, 1936.
Technovelgy (that's tech-novel-gee!) is devoted to the creative science inventions and ideas of sf authors. Look for the Invention Category that interests you, the Glossary, the Invention Timeline, or see what's New.
Science Fiction
Timeline
1600-1899
1900-1939
1940's 1950's
1960's 1970's
1980's 1990's
2000's 2010's
Current News
Megachurches Catch Up To Heinlein
'Mars,' the kid repeated, threw Boone a Scout salute and made a sixty-foot leap over the crowd.
Olympus 3D Printing Using Lunar And Martian Materials
The system may be used to create critical infrastructure on the Moon, including landing pads, blast shields, and roads.
Robot Builds Robots From Voxel Subunits
'I was patiently building the most dangerous thing in creation...'
Meltz Neurorehabilitation Robotic Hand
A new type of rehabilitation called "neuro-rehabilitation.
San Francisco Wants ED-209, Or Maybe Robocop
'The Enforcement Droid series 209 is a self-sufficient law enforcement robot...'
Seoul Self-Driving 42dot Bus Unveiled
'Buses without drivers moved close to the curb and stopped at intervals.'
T. Gondii And The Leaders Of The Pack
'... infected males were more than 46 times more likely to become pack leaders than uninfected males.'
'Parastronaut' First Astronaut With Disability From ESA (Updated!)
'He had left Earth to get away from its gravitational field...'
MIT Self-Assembling Reprogrammable Materials
'Faster the cubes moved; faster the circle revolved; the pyramids raised themselves, stood bolt upright on their square bases...'
Mem, The All-Your-Memories, Super Note-Taking App
'Life experience is linearly additive, but the correlation of memory impressions is an unlimited expansion.'
Porcine Fat Cells For 3D-Printed Whole Pork Products
'I grabbed two Syntho-Steaks out of the freezer...'
LANIUS Loitering Drone Munition Scouts And Maps
'... micro-missiles proceeding at walking pace.'
Copilot Software AI Training Sued By Involuntary Contributors
'...we've promised him a generous pension from the royalties.'
Thin Film Dome Protects Cities From Nuclear Blasts
'What fabric can take that kind of a load? Synthetic spider silk.'
Mars Space Weather Alert (MSWA) System
'On the three-dimensional map at weather headquarters... the storm was colored orange.'
Thermite's Robot Firefighter
Possibly worthy of Transformers!
