Robotic Snail Swarms
Year: 2024 Researchers: Da Zhao, Haobo Luo, Yuxiao Tu, Chongxi Meng & Tin Lun Lam Research University: Shenzhen Institute of Artificial Intelligence and Robotics for Society
"Terrestrial self-reconfigurable robot swarms offer adaptable solutions for various tasks. However, most existing swarms are limited to controlled indoor settings, and often compromise stability due to their freeform connections. To address these issues, we present a snail robotic swarm system inspired by land snails, tailored for unstructured environments. Our system also employs a two-mode connection mechanism, drawing from the adhesive capabilities of land snails." - Abstract
One of the more novel robotic designs I've seen! Sources: Snail-inspired robotic swarms: a hybrid connector drives collective adaptation in unstructured outdoor environments | Nature Communications Robotics & AI Lab - CUHK - YouTube Channel