Biomimicry

When studying underwater marine life, it helps if you can use a device that doesn't scare the animals by appearing unnatural to them. MIT scientists have created a robo-starfish with that in mind, utilizing a new rapid development system.

A new creation out of Duke University is yet another interesting example of an environmental sensing robot, taking after a dragonfly to skim across water and check for oil spills and other abnormalities, and doing so without any electronics onboard.

Fish have a sensory system known as the lateral line, which allows them to detect movements and pressure gradients in the water. Scientists have now given a robotic fish its own version of that system, letting it determine the best swimming speed.

Although wing-flapping micro-drones do already exist, the things tend to be quite fragile – and thus not ideally suited to real-world use. An experimental new one, however, utilizes a softer mechanism for greatly enhanced durability.

Things can get very chaotic on the ocean floor, making it difficult for underwater robots to keep from being swept away. New research, however, suggests that by copying the structure of the starfish, they could actually be pressed into place.

Although soft robotic graspers may be squishy on the outside, they usually still have hard, unyielding electronic components on the inside. A new and potentially more versatile bio-inspired grasping system, however, is 100 percent soft.

Soft robots are gaining a lot of attention in research circles, and from an engineering lab at the University of California, San Diego comes an interesting new example of this technology in the form of a robot that can move without any electronics.

Taking inspiration from some of the unique attributes of dragonfly wings, scientists at Germany’s Kiel University have developed a new type of splint for injured joints that offers support in all the right places.

If a drone were to inadvertently end up upside-down while flying, it would be good if the aircraft could automatically flip itself back over again, to avoid crashing. Such may someday be the case, thanks to a recent study on dragonfly flight.

By analyzing the way butterflies rapidly take flight in wind tunnel experiments, scientists have uncovered new detail around how the insects evade predators, using their wings to help generate small jets to propel them through the air.

When it comes to developing robots that can move efficiently through water, scientists regularly turn to creature’s like jellyfish for inspiration, and a UK research team has just produced one that can swim with the best of them.

We've already heard about small flying or wheeled robots that cooperate on tasks by working in collaborative "swarms." Harvard University researchers have now gone a step further, by developing tiny underwater robots that school together like fish.