Just What We Need--Hormonal Robots
Life imitates cartoons. Researchers at the University of SouthernCalifornia are building "transformers." Unlike the cartoon
variety, which can switch from mechanized Japanese warriors to
spaceships, these small transformers, called configurable robots
(or conros), would be self-assembling little machines that could
combine to take on different shapes depending on the task at hand.
USC's Information Sciences Institute sees a day when teams of 3-
inch-long conros find and attach themselves to one another to
tackle hazardous tasks--undersea, in outer space, or even in
battlefield work. Each conro consists of several small motors, a
computer chip, and the equipment to plug into other conros. The
effort is being supported by the Defense Advanced Research
Projects Agency. At the moment, researchers are experimenting with ways to give the machines a semblance of intelligence for
independent action.
How will conros work together to form, for instance, a large wheel or a snake? Electronic hormones. Wei-Min Shen, an assistant
professor at USC, says an electronic analog to hormones could be
passed from machine to machine. "It turns out to be a very
powerful metaphor for distributed control of this network of
little modules," Shen says.
The three-year project to create functioning conros is drawing to
an end. Shen thinks it's possible that there will be commercial
applications for conros within the next four years.
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