Scientists have shown robots that are controlled not by code, but of their own shape.
A group of small robots can move not as a familiar machine with the main computer, but as a living lump of soft material: individual modules cling to each other, disintegrate, reconnect and pass together where a single robot gets stuck quickly. Cornell University engineers have developed a Cross-Link Collective system, in which control is not born from complex algorithms, but from the shape of robots and physical contacts between modules.
The system consists of dozens of narrow robots with small linguists at the ends. Separately, the modules move slowly and cope poorly with a complex surface, but in the bundle they begin to behave like a coordinated team. Robots temporarily connect, pull each other, bypass obstacles and restructure the group form without a single control center.
Researchers call the approach mechanical intelligence. Instead of constantly exchanging data and commands, robots use simple physical interaction: collisions, clutch, tension and rupture of weak connections. The form of modules and the method of contact set the behavior of the whole group, so the team can continue to move even with a malfunction of the part of the robots.
Each robot has a length of about 200 mm and a width of about 20 mm. The internal motor causes the module to constantly change the shape between the direct Latin I and the curved U. The movement of the body creates an effort that pushes the robot forward on the surface. The velcro on the ends allow neighboring modules to cling to and uncouple directly during movement.
On the inclined surfaces of the bundles moved more reliable than single robots, which often stopped because of the unsuccessful position of the body. In an environment with obstacles, chains behaved almost like a fluid material: the compounds were held together, but they ruptured when the clutch prevented further from passing. Due to the redundancy, the system does not depend on one serviceable module.
The team also added simple feedback. When a robot breaks away from the group, the module emits an audible buzzing signal. Neighboring robots slow down, and the outgoing module gets time to join the team again. The mechanism does not need an overall motion plan or a central controller.
The first version of the robotic module was developed at the Georgia Institute of Technology. The Cornell University team later refined the system, conducted years of testing and statistical analysis to improve the grip and movement of large groups.
Cross-Link Collective is inspired by active gels: in such materials, molecular bonds are constantly formed and torn, but the general structure remains. Researchers believe that the principle will help develop soft robotics and create machines for an unpredictable environment where strict centralized control often turns out to be a weak point.
A group of small robots can move not as a familiar machine with the main computer, but as a living lump of soft material: individual modules cling to each other, disintegrate, reconnect and pass together where a single robot gets stuck quickly. Cornell University engineers have developed a Cross-Link Collective system, in which control is not born from complex algorithms, but from the shape of robots and physical contacts between modules.
The system consists of dozens of narrow robots with small linguists at the ends. Separately, the modules move slowly and cope poorly with a complex surface, but in the bundle they begin to behave like a coordinated team. Robots temporarily connect, pull each other, bypass obstacles and restructure the group form without a single control center.
Researchers call the approach mechanical intelligence. Instead of constantly exchanging data and commands, robots use simple physical interaction: collisions, clutch, tension and rupture of weak connections. The form of modules and the method of contact set the behavior of the whole group, so the team can continue to move even with a malfunction of the part of the robots.
Each robot has a length of about 200 mm and a width of about 20 mm. The internal motor causes the module to constantly change the shape between the direct Latin I and the curved U. The movement of the body creates an effort that pushes the robot forward on the surface. The velcro on the ends allow neighboring modules to cling to and uncouple directly during movement.
On the inclined surfaces of the bundles moved more reliable than single robots, which often stopped because of the unsuccessful position of the body. In an environment with obstacles, chains behaved almost like a fluid material: the compounds were held together, but they ruptured when the clutch prevented further from passing. Due to the redundancy, the system does not depend on one serviceable module.
The team also added simple feedback. When a robot breaks away from the group, the module emits an audible buzzing signal. Neighboring robots slow down, and the outgoing module gets time to join the team again. The mechanism does not need an overall motion plan or a central controller.
The first version of the robotic module was developed at the Georgia Institute of Technology. The Cornell University team later refined the system, conducted years of testing and statistical analysis to improve the grip and movement of large groups.
Cross-Link Collective is inspired by active gels: in such materials, molecular bonds are constantly formed and torn, but the general structure remains. Researchers believe that the principle will help develop soft robotics and create machines for an unpredictable environment where strict centralized control often turns out to be a weak point.
