Page 42 - cosmos4

Since long robot developers have

been looking at nature for inspiration
while developing robot mechanism
and RoboBee is a perfect example
of the same. The concept of
RoboBee was first conceived by
mechanical engineering student
Robert Wood in 1991. RoboBee is an autonomous drone robotic pollinator complete
with GPS, high-resolution cameras and artificial intelligence. Its bottom is covered in
horsehair and coated in a sticky gel. When it flies on to a flower, pollen grains stick
to it before rubbing off on the next flower.

Facts:

 The latest version of the RoboBee can stick to walls, can fly, dive into the water,
swim around, and propel out of the water.

 All those are tricky manoeuvres for RoboBee is based on larger amphibious
drones that manage those tricks.
 RoboBee weighs in at mere 175 milligrams only. The tiny machine overcomes
forces of mass, volume, and surface tension that are completely different than

what a bird-sized robot must deal with.
 The bot also requires a multimodal locomotive system (movement system) that

enables it to fly and swim.
 The RoboBee is nearly 1000 times lighter than any other aerial-aquatic robot,
and this difference in scale is what’s kept decades worth of Harvard engineering

students busy with the design.