@gizmag @NASAJPL Spiky Hedgehog robots to hop around asteroids and comets
I’m always fascinated by different ways robots can move and the NASA/JPL “Hedgehog” robots (jpl.nasa.gov) use inertia to help them move about in low gravity situations. What I really liked about the program is the validation testing that was done in low-gravity situations using a “Vomit Comet” aircraft flying in parabolic arcs, as is shown in the video below:
The hurricane twist to get out of craters is quite interesting and this would be an interesting robot to prototype; I imagine that there would be the need for object/light sensors and/or cameras on each face along with a six axis accelerometer and a magnetometer (if there was a magnetic field on the surface being moved about). You can read more about the program here: gizmag.com
