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
 |
Writhing Robotic Tentacle Uses Laser To Chop Nuke Hardware
This cool robotic arm from OC Robotics is an articulated tentacle arm that can get into small spaces and awkward geometries.
(Laser snake from OCRobotics)
The robotic arm itself is actually hollow, which allows OC Robotics to install tools at its end—in this case, for laser cutting. The arm currently holds a five-kilowatt laser, which is able to cut through thick plates of steel in both air and water.Its most recent test took place in the Sellafield nuclear power plant, in the north of England, which is currently being decommissioned. There, it was used to slice up a thick dissolver vessel, which had previously formed part of the core nuclear reactor hardware.
H.G. Wells was the first one to describe a writhing robotic tentacle in fiction (as far as I know); readers recall the steel tentacles from his 1898 novel War of the Worlds:
Seen nearer, the Thing was incredibly strange, for it was no mere insensate machine driving on its way. Machine it was, with a ringing metallic pace, and long, flexible, glittering tentacles (one of which gripped a young pine tree) swinging and rattling about its strange body.
Via Technology Review.
Scroll down for more stories in the same category. (Story submitted 11/17/2016)
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 - (" Robotics ")
Proof Of Robothood - Not A Person
'Who are you people? - Show 'em.' - James Cameron (1984).
Dancing Robots Taught Dance Moves
'A clockwork figure would be the thing for you...' Jerome K. Jerome, 1893.
Factory Humanoid Robots Built By Humanoid Robots
'...haven't you a section of the factory where only robot labor is employed?' - Isaac Asimov (1940).
Mornine Sales Robot
'Robot-salesmen were everywhere, gesturing...' - Philip K Dick, 1954.
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
Proof Of Robothood - Not A Person
'Who are you people? - Show 'em.'
Dancing Robots Taught Dance Moves
'A clockwork figure would be the thing for you...'
Indonesian Clans Battle
'The observation vehicle was of that peculiar variety used in conveying a large number of people across rough terrain.'
The 'Last Mile' In China Crowded With Delivery Robots
Yes, it's a delivery robot. On wheels.
Tornyol Microdrone Kills Mosquitoes
'The real border was defended by... a swarm of quasi-independent aerostats.'
PLATO Spacecraft, Hunter Of Habitable Planets, Now Ready
'I ... set my automatic astronomical instruments to searching for a habitable planet.'
Factory Humanoid Robots Built By Humanoid Robots
'...haven't you a section of the factory where only robot labor is employed?'
iPhone Air Fulfils Jobs' Promise From 2007 - A Giant Screen!
'... oblongs were all over the floor and surfaces.'
ChatGPT Now Participates in Group Chats
'...the city was their laboratory in human psychology.'
iPhone Pocket All Sold Out!
'A long, strong, slender net...'
Did The Yautja Have These First?
What a marvel of ingenuity the little device was!
Jetson ONE Air Races Begin, Can Air Polo Be Far Behind?
'If you're one of those rarities who haven't attended a rocket-polo "carnage", let me tell you it's a colorful affair.'
Will Space Stations Have Large Interior Spaces Again?
'They filed clumsily into the battleroom, like children in a swimming pool for the first time, clinging to the handholds along the side.'
Mornine Sales Robot
'Robot-salesmen were everywhere, gesturing...'
Bipedal Robot Floats Gently While Walking
'a walking balloon proceeded with long strides of its aluminum legs...'
Musk Idea Of Cars Talking To Each Other Predicted 70 Years Ago
'My cars talk to one another.'
