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
 |
TETWalker: Shape-Shifting Robot Swarm
A tetrahedral walker, or TETWalker robot, was demonstrated recently at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center. This bot is a prototype member of an autonomous nanotechnology swarm that can alter their shape to flow smoothly over rocky terrain, or combine to create structures like communications antennae and solar sails.
(TETWalker Prototype)
A robot shaped like a tetrahedron (a four-sided geometric figure) can "walk" by moving its center of mass to the side until it tips over in that direction. Repeating this movement results in a kind of side-to-side walking pattern.
(Simple TETWalker Concept)
If you add the ability to telescope the rods connecting the nodes of the tetrahedron, you get a robot that is capable of moving over obstacles. And the pyramid is a very strong and stable structure:
"If current robotic rovers topple over on a distant planet, they are doomed -- there is no way to send someone to get them back on their wheels again. However, TETwalkers move by toppling over. It's a very reliable way to get around," said Dr. Steven Curtis, principal investigator for the project.
(Complex TETWalker Concept)
The prototype was tested in Antarctica in January for harsh Mars-like testing. Motors may be placed at the center of the struts to improve reliability. The Autonomous Nanotechnology Swarm team (ANTS) believe that TETWalkers can be miniaturized using micro-electro-mechanical systems; by retracting their struts fully, TETWalkers can be stored for space voyages in very small spaces.
Eventually, it is hoped that the tiny 'bots will be able to swarm together to construct small objects or structures, like communications dishes.
In his 1995 novel The Diamond Age, Neal Stephenson wrote about swarms of tiny aerostats that used a grid formation to defend their assigned territory. Althought they functioned as independent devices, their swarm behavior let them respond as a group to threats.
Read more at NASA Tests Shape-Shifting Robot Pyramid For Nanotech Swarms; check out the autonomous nanotechnology swarm website. You might also be interested in a recent SF in the News story MADMEN Robot Swarm To Handle Incoming Asteroids?.
Scroll down for more stories in the same category. (Story submitted 3/30/2005)
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 ( 3 )
Related News Stories - (" Robotics ")
Will Robots Become Family Caregivers?
'The robant and the tiny old woman entered the control room slowly...' - Philip K. Dick, 1953.
RoboBallet The Dance Of Cooperative Robots
'...an integrated seven-unit robot team.' - Isaac Asimov, 1944.
Does CloneRobotics Offer A True Android?
Is this What Little Girls Are Made Of?
Robots Repair And Modify Themselves
'The overworked leg motor would have to cool down before he could work on it...' Harry Harrison, 1956.
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
Liuzhi Process Now In Use In China
'He was in a high-ceilinged windowless cell with walls of glittering white porcelain.'
Reflect Orbital Offers 'Sunlight on Demand' And Light Pollution
'I don't have to tell you about the seven two-mile-diameter orbital mirrors...'
Will Robots Become Family Caregivers?
'The robant and the tiny old woman entered the control room slowly...'
Chinese Tokamak Uses AI To Keep Fusion Plasma Stable
'Guy named Otto Octavius winds up with eight limbs... What are the odds?'
Time Crystals Can Now Be Seen Directly
'It is as you thought when you constructed the time crystal, my master Vaylan.'
RoboBallet The Dance Of Cooperative Robots
'...an integrated seven-unit robot team.'
Chrysalis Generation Ship to Alpha Centauri
'This was their world, their planet —
this swift-traveling, yet seemingly moveless vessel.'
Alexa+ And Its AI Brain Improvements
'What's it do?' he asked. 'It amuses.'
Does CloneRobotics Offer A True Android?
Is this What Little Girls Are Made Of?
Brain Implant Is Able To Capture Your Inner Dialogue
'So you see, you can hide nothing from me.'
Are AIs Going Rogue Like Hal 9000
'I know that you and Frank were planning to disconnect me...'
Animated Tumblebugs On Astounding Cover!
'Gaines and Harvey mounted tumblebugs, and kept abreast of the Cadet Captain...'
LingYuan Vehicle Roof Drones Now Available, ala Blade Runner 2049
Accompanied by a small selection of similar ideas from science fiction.
China Steals Strato Airship Design From Google App Engine
'...war-balloons, or, as it would be more correct to call them, navigable aerostats.'
The First Space Warship For Space Force
'Each of the electrical ships carried about twenty men...'
Biohybrid Jellyfish Explore The Ocean
As predicted, and detailed, by science fiction writers!
