Robots are no longer new to the masses. There have been several robots, but one of the prime causes that limits this gadget is its ability to commute swiftly. Robots with legs are very complex, expensive and encounter problems if they fall while the ones with wheels limit the size of obstacles they can overcome.
Keeping these things in mind, Rhodri Armour, a PhD student from the University of Bath as created a new robot that can jump like a grasshopper and roll like a ball, dubbed Jollbot.
Jollbot jumps over obstacles and rolls over smoother terrain, could play a key role in space exploration or land survey work in the future.
Rhodri and colleagues in the University’s Centre for Biomimetic & Natural Technologies are inspired by nature to conveniently resolve one of the major problems faced in the manufacturing of robots.
Talking about Jollbot, it’s a spherical cage that rolls in any direction and eliminates the problem of overturning or getting stuck in potholes. This flexible and small robot weighs less than 1 kg and will not damage on jumping, thus is less expensive than the conventional ones.
Mr Armour explained:”Others in the past have made robots that jump and robots that roll; but we’ve made the first robot that can do both.”
“We’ve made a robot that jumps in a similar way to the grasshopper, but uses electrical motors to slowly store the energy needed to leap in its springy skeleton.
“Before jumping, the robot squashes its spherical shape. When it is ready, it releases the stored energy all at once to jump to heights of up to half a metre.”
He added: “Future prototypes could include a stretchy skin covered in solar cells on the outside of the robot, so it could power itself, and robotic control sensors to enable it to sense its environment.”
The robot is built using components made by rapid prototyping technology. Well, we hope this grasshopper inspired robot contributes to the research work in future.
