Stanford University scientists have taken inspiration from ants for their latest creation – tiny robots capable of pulling a car.
The researchers at Stanford’s Biomimetics and Dextrous Manipulation Lab wanted to find a way to harness the collective power of a team of ants in robot form, replicating ants’ ability to carry objects much heavier than themselves by working as a team.
Showing their strength in this video, six 17 gram “μTug” robots pull a 1,800kg car. Each robot can pull up to 23 kilograms alone.
The researchers studied the teamwork of ants before attempting to replicate it. Experiments found that fast-moving or jerky robots worked inefficiently in groups. Instead the slower robots proved more efficient.
After months of work the researchers were able to mimic the actions of ants, adding in an aspect borrowed from the toes of geckos - an adhesive that anchored the robots to the ground.
David Christensen, a researcher working on the robots told the New York Times: “By considering the dynamics of the team, not just the individual, we are able to build a team of our ‘microTug’ robots that, like ants, are super strong individually, but then also work together as a team.”
The research is due to be presented to the International Conference on Robotics and Automation.
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