Life rescue robot incorporating movement and shock resistance of cockroach is under development

Modeled cockroach movementsInsect RoboOr you can operate with iPhone / iPadCockroach-like radio controlAlthough some products that made robots a cockroach tended to be disliked as an unpleasant pest, such as, University of California at Berkeley attract attention to the structure of the cockroach's body, it is useful for rescue of life in the event of a disaster We are developing robots.

Cockroach inspires robot that squeezes through cracks | Berkeley News
http://news.berkeley.edu/2016/02/08/cockroach-inspires-robot-that-squeezes-through-cracks/

This robot cockroach could eventually help search search - and - rescue teams | The Verge
http://www.theverge.com/2016/2/8/10936886/robot-cockroach-prototype-search-rescue-uc-berkeley

Researchers squish cockroaches in order to design a robot | Ars Technica
http://arstechnica.com/science/2016/02/researchers-squish-cockroaches-in-order-to-design-a-robot/

Life rescue robot being developed at the PolyPEDAL laboratory at the University of California, Berkeley, inspired by cockroach "CRAMYou can see how it works with the following movie.

In addition, as the real cockroach moves around in the movie, attention is required for browsing.

Cockroach robots to the rescue! - YouTube


CRAM is an abbreviation for "compressible robot with articulated mechanisms" meaning a compressible robot equipped with a joint mechanism, comprising a skeleton combining several parts and a soft material shell, the skeleton and shell being deformed flat It is a robot that can pass through narrow gaps.


Kaushik Jayaram and Robert Full, researchers involved in the development of CRAM said, "With the idea of ​​the characteristic movement of cockroaches and shock resistance, it is possible to use life-saving robots that can be active in debris and space in a narrow space I started developing it. " Shell is as big as a fist, cardboard and polyester are used as a material. At first glance the outer shell of the structure like a dung beetle 's body was produced with inspiration in Japanese Origami.


In the PolyPEDAL laboratory, we observe cockroaches under various environments. For example, in experiments on impact resistance, it was found that cockroaches can withstand as much as 900 times the weight of their own weight, so it is also utilized for the structure of the robot shell. Even if you crush the shell from above ......


It will easily return to its original shape without breaking. He said he will withstand a load of about 20 pounds (about 9 kg).


In addition, the cockroach was able to pass the narrow clearance of about 3 mm in height and the road of about 4 mm in width by deforming the body flat. In the PolyPEDAL laboratory, when cockroaches pass through a narrow clearance, they discovered that the legs are fan-shaped and move quickly, designing the leg parts of the CRAM.


It has a structure that the legs are opened to 180 degrees.


The state of CRAM walking is as follows. I am walking as it is without shrinking the body in a wide place.


In a narrow space where the height is about half, walking with pedaling the body.


CRAM is expected to play an active role as a life rescue robot in the event of a disaster, and part of development costs are also being offered by the US Army. Mr. Full says that "The mystery of the design of the natural world is hidden in the structure of the cockroach," he says that the future task is to find the material of the robot suitable for the scene of the disaster.