Robocarp: Mecha Fish to Track Oil Spills

uploaded by methodshop June 17, 2008 at 08:47 am
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Robocarp: Mecha Fish to Track Oil Spills by methodshop

Researchers at the University of Washington in Seattle have developed a new type of robotic fish which moves through the water as a real fish does: with fins. Such locomotion makes the mechafish more energy-efficient and maneuverable. But that's not all: these fish-bots can communiate with each other via sonar-like pings, though the developers are working on a more advanced communications system.

By mimicking a fish's natural propulsion mechanics these "autonomous fin-actuated underwater vehicles" are able to swim in any direction, make tight turns, and even go backwards, researchers say. The university is testing three of the vehicles in an indoor freshwater tank equipped with a four-camera tracking system to supplement data collected by onboard sensors.

And, yes, the military is interested. Speaking of which, iRobot has won the commercial rights to the another University of Washington project called the Seaglider. iRobot is no stranger to such projects. While most widely known for their Roomba, iRobot also builds a bomb-busting robot that is on active duty in Afghanistan, as well as a combat robot that is meant to deploy this year.