Engineers Build Air Powered Robot for Hazardous Exploration

by Niko Sayu, age 11

A team of mechanical engineers from the University of California, San Diego, has just created a robot that runs on air. It is made from a singular 3D printed piece. The fact that it can be printed cheaply and easily makes it advantageous in exploring dangerous places like Chernobyl or small mountain caves.

The team is led by engineer Yichen Zhai, who, along with a team of colleagues, created a machine that may revolutionize the exploration of hazardous environments forever. The robot is a six-legged crawler made from a type of flexible plastic used in hoses and shoe soles. It can be 3D printed in one piece, yet it is soft, sturdy, and durable. The robot took two and a half days for the engineers to print. Its flexibility and sturdiness, as well as the fact that it can be printed in almost any size, would make it an incredibly useful tool for any work on flooded or dangerous sites. Its electronics-free design can be helpful in places where flammable objects could be at risk as well.

The robot waddles with three of its legs at a time to avoid tipping over. It uses a can of pressurized air that flows in tubes and through chambers to power its “limbs ”so it can waddle. The crawler moves at a slow 1.6 inches (four centimeters) per second, which is faster than a snail, but still not quite as fast as a turtle.

This innovative design may change task work in hazardous conditions forever, and is undoubtedly a beneficial creation for exploration and research in hazardous conditions that leaves just one question: How might these soft robots be used next?

[Source: Science News Explores]