underwaterrobot
Latest
ICYMI: Self-warming concrete, underwater robot and more
#fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-692596{display:none;} .cke_show_borders #fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-692596, #postcontentcontainer #fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-692596{width:570px;display:block;} try{document.getElementById("fivemin-widget-blogsmith-image-692596").style.display="none";}catch(e){}Today on In Case You Missed It: Curling up with a fireplace and a bottle of whiskey is now a little less depressing, now that we know self-heating concrete is on the way. Still a research project in Nebraska, conductive concrete can operate on a low amount of electric current and de-ice itself. It's just what we've needed.
Underwater robot has sense of touch, class and style
At the Fraunhofer Institute in Bremen, Germany, a group of researchers, in conjunction with the German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence DFKI, is developing an underwater robot with a sense of touch. The octopus-esque robot is equipped with a strain gauge which triggers electrical resistance changes when an obstacle is encountered. The strain gauges -- which are printed onto the robot -- which are ten micrometers wide (about half the width of a human hair), are made up of atomized nanoparticles, and are extremely sensitive. The researchers intend for the robot to be able to distinguish between actual obstacles and water currents. The robot's first stop will be a public trade show at the end of May in Nuremberg, after which it will presumably make it's way to the dark depths of the sea to meet up with Captain Nemo and the giant squid.
Build your own underwater ROV for $250
Granted, this here project isn't nearly as inexpensive as the $100 underwater ROV from years back, but at least this one is propelled by something a bit more advanced than a pull string. Regardless, the ROV-in-a-Box Project Kit -- created by folks from Carl Hayden High School for use in the National Underwater Robotics Challenge -- is a $249.95 package that "includes all the parts needed to build a working underwater robot: a frame, motors, underwater light, camera, 50-foot tether, operator control box, and a dry-cell battery." Of course, you'll still be required to provide your own tools and TV monitor, but to take a closer look at exactly what a nickel under $250 will buy you, click on through for a detailed video (but do tap Mute beforehand, okay?).[Via GoRobotics]
Underwater robots to help stem oil spill
Oil firm Petron is turning is turning to robots to try to keep a massive oil spill from getting any worse after a tanker carrying 53,000 gallons of the black gold sank off the coast of the island of Guimaras in the Philippines on August 11th. So far, the spill has affected some 40,000 nearby residents and damaged close to 200 miles of coastline, with the potential to spread even further. According to Petron, the sinking is also the deepest one in recent memory, making it impossible for divers to even inspect the vessel, hence the robots. As soon as they've pinpointed the exact location of the tanker, the salvage team will send down a remote-operated vehicle to asses the damage. If the ship is upright they'll just connect some lines and suck out rest of the oil inside; but things aren't so accessible, they'll use the robot to drill directly into the oil tanks and siphon it out the hard way. Hmm, forcing robots to clean up our dirty messes- this is something they definitely won't forget during the inevitable uprising.[Via Robot Gossip]
