Meet Tribot, the Swiss Army Knife of Robots for Rescue Missions
March 1, 2018 | EPFLEstimated reading time: 1 minute
EPFL scientists are developing a three-legged robot for search and rescue missions that can crawl, roll, jump, and – like a Swiss Army knife – fold away into compact form, all on less power than your standard LED light.
Meet Tribot, the three-legged origami robot designed and built by EPFL scientists. Tri- for three legs and -bot for robot, this super-light critter fits in the palm of your hand, is cheap to build, runs on less than one watt of power, and may one day be deployed in mass for search and rescue missions.
“Hundreds of Tribots could be dropped from the sky into remote areas, and reach places using their three types of locomotion that more expensive and larger robots cannot,” explains EPFL scientist Jamie Paik, head of the Reconfigurable Robotics Laboratory. “It only weighs a few grams, so it’s the perfect robot when weight is a constraint.”
Like a Swiss Army knife, tribots are multi-functional : they crawl, roll, and hop to get around obstacles – with a prototype jumping repeatedly as high as 25 centimeters, seven times their size. They can also fold-up into a little package, and unfold themselves into an upright position, even when dropped from high altitudes. The scientists are experimenting with different types of shape memory alloys as actuators for improved energy management.
Now working on a fourth generation of Tribot prototypes, the scientists have come up with a systematic design method that takes into account the robot’s flat and folded configurations, functional materials, flexible mechanisms, and using only 2D fabrication methods, similar to circuit board printing. Such systematic design and integrated manufacturing processes allow for fast prototyping, flexibility in design and choice of materials, which are crucial for creating “printable robots”, leveraging robot mass production that require no manual assembly. The results are published in IEEE Transactions on Robotics.
“These developments are a crucial step toward the autonomous battery-powered millirobots with all-terrain locomotion capabilities, beneficial for mitigating hazards, monitoring and exploring diverse environments,” adds EPFL scientist and lead author Zhenishbek Zhakypov.
Suggested Items
iNEMI Packaging Tech Topic Series: Role of EDA in Advanced Semiconductor Packaging
04/26/2024 | iNEMIAdvanced semiconductor packaging with heterogenous integration has made on-package integration of multiple chips a crucial part of finding alternatives to transistor scaling. Historically, EDA tools for front-end and back-end design have evolved separately; however, design complexity and the increased number of die-to-die or die-to-substrate interconnections has led to the need for EDA tools that can support integration of overall design planning, implementation, and system analysis in a single cockpit.
Cadence, TSMC Collaborate on Wide-Ranging Innovations to Transform System and Semiconductor Design
04/25/2024 | Cadence Design SystemsCadence Design Systems, Inc. and TSMC have extended their longstanding collaboration by announcing a broad range of innovative technology advancements to accelerate design, including developments ranging from 3D-IC and advanced process nodes to design IP and photonics.
Ansys, TSMC Enable a Multiphysics Platform for Optics and Photonics, Addressing Needs of AI, HPC Silicon Systems
04/25/2024 | PRNewswireAnsys announced a collaboration with TSMC on multiphysics software for TSMC's Compact Universal Photonic Engines (COUPE). COUPE is a cutting-edge Silicon Photonics (SiPh) integration system and Co-Packaged Optics platform that mitigates coupling loss while significantly accelerating chip-to-chip and machine-to-machine communication.
Siemens’ Breakthrough Veloce CS Transforms Emulation and Prototyping with Three Novel Products
04/24/2024 | Siemens Digital Industries SoftwareSiemens Digital Industries Software launched the Veloce™ CS hardware-assisted verification and validation system. In a first for the EDA (Electronic Design Automation) industry, Veloce CS incorporates hardware emulation, enterprise prototyping and software prototyping and is built on two highly advanced integrated circuits (ICs) – Siemens’ new, purpose-built Crystal accelerator chip for emulation and the AMD Versal™ Premium VP1902 FPGA adaptive SoC (System-on-a-chip) for enterprise and software prototyping.
Listen Up! The Intricacies of PCB Drilling Detailed in New Podcast Episode
04/25/2024 | I-Connect007In episode 5 of the podcast series, On the Line With: Designing for Reality, Nolan Johnson and Matt Stevenson continue down the manufacturing process, this time focusing on the post-lamination drilling process for PCBs. Matt and Nolan delve into the intricacies of the PCB drilling process, highlighting the importance of hole quality, drill parameters, and design optimization to ensure smooth manufacturing. The conversation covers topics such as drill bit sizes, aspect ratios, vias, challenges in drilling, and ways to enhance efficiency in the drilling department.