Swarms of robots acting together to carry out jobs could provide new opportunities for humans to harness the power of machines.
Researchers in the Sheffield Centre for Robotics, jointly established by the University of Sheffield and Sheffield Hallam University, have been working to program a group of 40 robots, and say the ability to control robot swarms could prove hugely beneficial in a range of contexts, from military to medical.
The researchers have demonstrated that the swarm can carry out simple fetching and carrying tasks, by grouping around an object and working together to push it across a surface.
The robots can also group themselves together into a single cluster after being scattered across a room, and organize themselves by order of priority.
Dr Roderich Gross, head of the Natural Robotics Lab, in the Department of Automatic Control and Systems Engineering at the University of Sheffield, says swarming robots could have important roles to play in the future of micromedicine, as ‘nanobots’ are developed for non-invasive treatment of humans. On a larger scale, they could play a part in military, or search and rescue operations, acting together in areas where it would be too dangerous or impractical for humans to go. In industry too, robot swarms could be put to use, improving manufacturing processes and workplace safety.
The programming that the University of Sheffield team has developed to control the robots is deceptively simple. For example, if the robots are being asked to group together, each robot only needs to be able to work out if there is another robot in front of it. If there is, it turns on the spot; if there isn’t, it moves in a wider circle until it finds one.
Dr Gross said: “We are developing Artificial Intelligence to control robots in a variety of ways. The key is to work out what is the minimum amount of information needed by the robot to accomplish its task. That’s important because it means the robot may not need any memory, and possibly not even a processing unit, so this technology could work for nanoscale robots, for example in medical applications.”
The Latest Bing News on:
Swarm robotics
- How the robots will remember us when we’re extincton April 18, 2024 at 10:00 am
With apologies to Descartes, these robots (and the humans their intelligence reflects) are prone to overthink, therefore they’re endearing. An ensemble effort of the most appetizing kind, Rorschach’s ...
- Controllable Cyborg Cockroaches Capable of Traversing Complex Terrains, Created by Scientistson April 17, 2024 at 9:21 pm
A Singaporean study has created cyborg cockroaches to remedy the traversal problems of conventional autonomous robots.
- Swarm of cyborg cockroaches that act as hunting machines’ to be stuffed inside large robots before being let looseon April 17, 2024 at 1:01 pm
CYBORG cockroaches could be put inside larger robots and released on missions, according to new research. The cockroaches all have gadgets attached that allow them to be controlled by a computer.
- Computer-mounted cyborg cockroach swarms could help in rescue missionson April 17, 2024 at 6:31 am
Additionally, it introduces a novel control algorithm tailored for swarming behavior. “The effectiveness of the algorithm is demonstrated through an experimental validation in which a cyborg swarm was ...
- Watch a swarm of cyborg cockroaches controlled by computerson April 17, 2024 at 4:39 am
Remote-controlled cockroaches with computers mounted on their backs can move as a swarm towards a target location, and could be used for search missions ...
- Scientists unleash army of remote-controlled cyborg cockroaches in deserton April 17, 2024 at 12:53 am
Scientists in Singapore unleashed an army of remote-controlled cyborg cockroaches in a desert terrain to test such a swarm for future search-and-rescue missions.
- Is the next cold war a drone-swarm race between US and China?on April 16, 2024 at 10:41 pm
Both global superpowers are building up their capacity for surging robotic warfare. What happens next is anyone's guess.
- Army of Backpack-Wearing Cyborg Cockroaches Swarm Desert Targeton April 16, 2024 at 3:30 pm
Autoroaches, Roll Out Researchers at the Nanyang Technological University in Singapore have unleashed an army of remote-controlled cyborg cockroaches to swarm a target in a sandy test area. The ...
- Review: Latest Landroid robo-mower could do with a tad more Visionon April 16, 2024 at 3:06 am
We've now spent several months with the latest wire-free Landroid robo-mower, and we've found it a mix of confusing, educational, satisfying and highly entertaining. Oddly enough, the one thing the ...
- US-China competition to field military drone swarms could fuel global arms raceon April 12, 2024 at 6:58 am
U.S. and Chinese military planners are gearing up for a new kind of warfare in which squadrons of air and sea drones equipped with artificial intelligence work together like a swarm of bees to overwhe ...
The Latest Google Headlines on:
Swarm robotics
[google_news title=”” keyword=”swarm robotics” num_posts=”10″ blurb_length=”0″ show_thumb=”left”]
[/vc_column_text]
The Latest Bing News on:
Swarming robots
- "Turing test" for animal systemson April 19, 2024 at 3:34 am
What advantages do robots offer in researching the behavioural rules of animal groups? How is robotics research inspired by nature? Three robotics ...
- How the robots will remember us when we’re extincton April 18, 2024 at 10:00 am
With apologies to Descartes, these robots (and the humans their intelligence reflects) are prone to overthink, therefore they’re endearing. An ensemble effort of the most appetizing kind, Rorschach’s ...
- Controllable Cyborg Cockroaches Capable of Traversing Complex Terrains, Created by Scientistson April 17, 2024 at 9:21 pm
A Singaporean study has created cyborg cockroaches to remedy the traversal problems of conventional autonomous robots.
- Swarm of cyborg cockroaches that act as hunting machines’ to be stuffed inside large robots before being let looseon April 17, 2024 at 1:01 pm
CYBORG cockroaches could be put inside larger robots and released on missions, according to new research. The cockroaches all have gadgets attached that allow them to be controlled by a computer.
- Computer-mounted cyborg cockroach swarms could help in rescue missionson April 17, 2024 at 6:31 am
Additionally, it introduces a novel control algorithm tailored for swarming behavior. “The effectiveness of the algorithm is demonstrated through an experimental validation in which a cyborg swarm was ...
- Watch a swarm of cyborg cockroaches controlled by computerson April 17, 2024 at 4:39 am
Remote-controlled cockroaches with computers mounted on their backs can move as a swarm towards a target location, and could be used for search missions ...
- Army of Backpack-Wearing Cyborg Cockroaches Swarm Desert Targeton April 16, 2024 at 3:30 pm
Autoroaches, Roll Out Researchers at the Nanyang Technological University in Singapore have unleashed an army of remote-controlled cyborg cockroaches to swarm a target in a sandy test area. The ...
- Review: Latest Landroid robo-mower could do with a tad more Visionon April 16, 2024 at 3:06 am
We've now spent several months with the latest wire-free Landroid robo-mower, and we've found it a mix of confusing, educational, satisfying and highly entertaining. Oddly enough, the one thing the ...
- Competition to field military drone swarms could fuel global arms race between the US and Chinaon April 12, 2024 at 8:48 am
U.S. and Chinese military planners are gearing up for a new kind of warfare in which squadrons of air and sea drones equipped with artificial intelligence work together like a swarm of bees to ...
- Tesla reveals humanoid robot technology through new patentson April 10, 2024 at 11:16 am
Tesla has revealed some of its humanoid robot technology through filings for several new patents related to its Optimus ...
The Latest Google Headlines on:
Swarming robots
[google_news title=”” keyword=”swarming robots” num_posts=”10″ blurb_length=”0″ show_thumb=”left”]