 |
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
|
 |
Snake Robot Roundup!
The snake robots are coming; slithering, grinding, undulating robots that crawl on their bellies like reptiles across the Earth (and maybe other planets):
R7[1] - early robotic snake
A very early robotic snake called R7[1] was built at Hughes Aircraft and tested in May of 1987. The motors were remote from the axes being driven; power is transmitted to the joints via low force/high velocity cables. Each joint has an 11:1 reduction drive. Note that this is not a free-moving snakebot; it is more like an elephant's trunk (being attached to a controller at one end).

(From Hughes Robot Snake)
See the R7[1] Snake robot for more photos and information.
Ames Gen 2 Snake robot heads for Mars?

(From NASA Ames Gen 2)
NASA developed the Ames Generation 2 experimental robotic snake in 2000 to help explore other worlds. This snakebot is able to independently dig in loose extraterrestrial soil and plan routes over or around obstacles. It could be ready in as little as five years, according to NASA engineers.
"The key part of what we are striving for in the second snakebot version and beyond is sensor-based control in which the robot uses its sensors to decide what to do,’" Gary Haith, lead "snakebot" engineer, said. "We made two little microcontrollers, tiny computers, that we put in each hinged section that also includes a motor, electronics and gears to get the hinge to move to certain positions," he explained.
It is hoped that the snake robot can save spacecraft weight; the snake-like design enables the robot to do many tasks without much extra equipment. "One of the many advantages of the snake-based design is that the robot is field-repairable. We can include a bunch of identical spare modules with the snake on a space mission, and then we can fix the snakebot much easier than a regular robot that needs specific parts," said Haith. "Other benefits are: the snakebot can crawl off a spacecraft lander and doesn’t need a ramp, the snake's moving parts can be sealed inside artificial skin to avoid exposure to the outside environment and the robot can still function, even if one joint freezes."
British 'Serpentine Spy' wriggles with shape-memory alloy
This prototype military reconnaissance robot was designed in 2003 to be dropped from a helicopter, and then creep around the battlefield, spying on the enemy. In theory, it would be less obvious than any kind of wheeled vehicle.

(From Self-Healing Snake robot)
It was also designed to be self-repairing. If any of its segments become damaged, the software works to "evolve" a way to continue its mission. It also has a shape-changing antenna to broadcast audio and video.
Each segment has three individual "muscles" made ofa shape-memory alloy called nitinol running down its length. When a current is applied to particular wires, the crystal structure of nitinol shrinks, shortening those wires. When the current is removed, the wires snap back into shape, wriggling the snakebot forward.
Read more about it at Self-healing snake robot.
Go to Snake Robot Roundup: Part Two.
Scroll down for more stories in the same category. (Story submitted 4/23/2005)
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 ( 0 )
Related News Stories -
("
Robotics
")
Barista Robot Perfects Latte Swirl With Multi-DOF Wriggle
'It's done with a flip of the third joint of the tentacle on the down beat.' - Anthony Boucher, 1943.
Safe Street Rebel Autonomous Vehicle Luddites And Schachner's 1931 Robot-Deranger
'Then the spreading beam of the deranging ray struck them, and they stood an instant transfixed...' - Schachner/Zagat, 1931
ARX-5 Doing Robot Arm Dancing
It's Data's day - at last.
Inbiodroid Prometheus 2.0 Telepresence Avatar Robot
My prize robot, tall, dashing would speak and act for me... - Manly Wade Wellman, 1938.
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
Barista Robot Perfects Latte Swirl With Multi-DOF Wriggle
'It's done with a flip of the third joint of the tentacle on the down beat.'
Vendetta 2023 All-Terrain Skateboard Could Use Neal Stephenson's Smartwheels
'If you surf over a bump... If you surf over a pothole...'
Safe Street Rebel Autonomous Vehicle Luddites And Schachner's 1931 Robot-Deranger
'Then the spreading beam of the deranging ray struck them, and they stood an instant transfixed...'
The Electric Balance Bicycle And The Decline Of Western Civilization
'Noiselessly, on rubber-tired wheels, they journeyed...'
'Droplet' Battery Microscale Power Pack
'...a power pack the size of a pea.'
ARX-5 Doing Robot Arm Dancing
It's Data's day - at last.
CD, DVD Bit Rot And PKD's Civic Notification Distorter
'...copy two of the original document no longer can be superimposed on copy one.'
Inbiodroid Prometheus 2.0 Telepresence Avatar Robot
My prize robot, tall, dashing would speak and act for me...
Amazon One Is Frank Herbert's Palm Lock
'A palm lock must be keyed to one individual's hand shape and palm lines.'
DroneDog Ground Security Robot Dogs From Asylon
'I have transferred the ego of a dog to a synthetic dog brain in the skull case of a robot dog.'
Who Knows What Might Be Found When Visiting A Metal Asteroid?
'...inspect the tiny speck of matter that swam toward them out of the bottomless void.'
Giant Lunar Surface Test Bed Built On Earth
Astronauts first walked the site, then flew over the site at a few hundred feet in a small Cessna.
FlyCroTug Drones Work In Teams Now
'It slid smoothly out of its cell like a metal wasp emerging from its nest, and hung in midair.'
Zai Pits (West Sahel) And Dew Collectors (Dune)
'Each is planted most tenderly in its own little pit.'
Delivery Robots Being Bullied, Robbed
'Robots have worse problems than anybody.' (A Present for Pat)
Zoom Education Idea Is 100 Years Old
'... the frosted glass squares began, one by one, to show the faces and shoulders of a peculiar type of young men.'
More SF in the News Stories
More Beyond Technovelgy science news stories
|
 |