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Hyperion Robot Follows the Sun
jeffsenter writes: "NASA is about to test a solar powered and solar orienting wheeled robot known as Hyperion on arctic Devos Island, Canada. The Carnegie Mellon designed robot is a prototype for future robots to explore the polar regions of Mars, the Moon, and other moons. Here is the BBC article and here is the NYTimes (free reg. req.)."
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By knowing where it is and the correct time, the robot can compute where the Sun is and keep its solar panel pointed in the right direction.
Strange. Why does a robot need to know its location and the time of day in order to find where the sun is? Unless it's a cloudy day, would not a simple light-sensitive sensor suffice? And if it's cloudy or night time solar panels are not much use.
Besides, even if it knows its precise location and the correct time, it would also need to know which direction it is facing and its exact angle with respect to the vertical. Seems to be a rather complex approach to a relatively simple problem.
...if it gets too close to a light bulb will it drive around in circles like insects do? Some Martians are gonna want to have a nighttime barbecue and this thing is gonna keep driving circles around them. You just know they're going to swat it...
It's really hard to figure out size from the picture since all you've got to compare it to is the landscape of an unknown red planet with water on it and a sunset in the distance.
"We're trying to create robots with more and more intelligence," Dr Wettergreen told BBC News Online. "By more intelligence, I mean they are able to reason about where they need to go and what they need to do to get there."
That's good. Very good actually. The marketting department in my current software shop could use a couple of these, unlike the rest of our marketroids these robots are able to reason about where they need to go and what they need to do to get there!
You can't handle the truth.
So the robot follows the sun. Big frickin' deal. I've trained my Aibo to follow co-eds in short skirts. It's even trained to take pictures with its 640x480 CCD camera and upload them to Igor on voyeurweb.
All I'm saying is that NASA seems to spend a lot of time worrying about not getting lost on Mars, and not enough time worrying about how to take compromising photos of those fly-ass Martian babes I saw in those fifties sci-fi flicks.
Hey freaks: now you're ju
I would imagine that the tires will be rubber or foam filled. The advantage of rubber or foam filled is that you can have a self-healing super-composite (usually accomplished by embedding foam or epoxy capsules within the material)... Tracks would be ideal, but the weight doesn't justify the added maneuverability, especially since those benefits aren't realized as well in particularly rocky terrain. Treads deal great with bumpy terrain and with low-traction terrain, but when the bumpiness is more granular treads may actually decrease effectiveness...
I am disrespectful to dirt! Can you see that I am serious?!
The BBC article says the robot can call for human help if need be. What happens when it is on Mars. Will NASA send a mechanic to Mars?
Of course it could make for some interesting robot race challenges....
m00.