Have you ever imagined a tiny robot scuttling through your home like an insect? Meet the "electronic cockroach," a new microbot developed by Chinese researchers that's changing the game in robotics! 🤖🐞
Weighing just over 1 gram and measuring 2 cm long, this agile microbot can squeeze into and navigate the tightest spots. What's even cooler? It can withstand up to 60 kg of force without damage – that's like a small car driving over it!
According to a recent paper in Nature Communications, the team from the University of Electronic Science and Technology of China (UESTC), located in Chengdu, Sichuan Province, on the Chinese mainland, designed the robot using flexible materials that act like an exoskeleton. This lets it fold under pressure and bounce back to its original shape in no time.
Here's the specs rundown:
- Speed: 4.8 body lengths per second
- Turning: 280° per second
- Power: Single actuator controls shape, direction, and angle
- Amphibious mode: Legs transform into paddles in water
With its resilience and maneuverability, the electronic cockroach could be a hero in disaster search and rescue, pipeline inspections, and missions in narrow or confined spaces. However, there's a catch: its tiny lithium battery only lasts about 20 minutes, so researchers are racing to boost its power and endurance.
Still, this microbot is a major leap toward insect-scale robots that could someday help humans in places too dangerous or cramped for people to reach. Stay tuned – the future of robotics just got a lot smaller! ✨
Reference(s):
cgtn.com
