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6 Tiny Robotic Ants, Weighing 3.5 Oz. In Total, Pull a 3900-lb. Car (nytimes.com)

Posted by msmash on from the friends-of-ant-man dept.

Reader schwit1 writes about MicroTug, a team of six microrobots that weigh just 3.5 ounces (99 grams), and can move a car: Researchers at Standford University's Biomimetics and Dexterous Manipulation Lab have developed six miniature robots that have the pulling-power to move objects 2,000 times of their own body weight. The tiny robots and their inter-coordination are based on that of ants. The microrobot uses a special kind of glue on its feet that make them serve as sticky gecko toes. "Their new demonstration is the functional equivalent of a team of six humans moving a weight equivalent to that of an Eiffel Tower and three Statues of Liberty," said David Christensen, a graduate student who is one of the authors of "Let's All Pull Together: Principles for Sharing Large Loads in Microrobot Teams paper. Researchers' fascination with gecko adhesive is nothing new. In 2010, Stanford mechanical engineer Mark Cutkosky developed a Stickybot that could climb walls. A similar robot that could roll up on smooth as well rough surfaces was demonstrated by a group of researchers in Canada in 2011.

25 of 130 comments (clear)

  1. The car wasn't pulled by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Interesting

    They made the car roll, not the same thing as pulling the effeil tower...

    1. Re:The car wasn't pulled by KBentley57 · · Score: 5, Insightful

      I was going to post something similar. I hate comparisons like these. The 'ants' are pulling against the rolling resistance of the car, not the car laying on its side, as would be the case with the tower equivalent weights. Unless you had some gigantic roller bearings to slide them across.

    2. Re:The car wasn't pulled by wonkey_monkey · · Score: 3, Insightful

      The car wasn't pulled

      They made the car roll

      Yes... by pulling it.

      --
      systemd is Roko's Basilisk.
    3. Re:The car wasn't pulled by nintendoeats · · Score: 2

      I don't feel that was misleading. When somebody says that they towed their car, I do not assume that they put it on it's roof to do so.

      One thing that I think IS misleading is when people demonstrate how strong something is by dropping a car on it, completely failing to mention that the suspension and tires are distributing the weight over time and that an equivilent brick would smash straight through.

    4. Re:The car wasn't pulled by nintendoeats · · Score: 2

      ...thanks for the immasculation :p

    5. Re:The car wasn't pulled by Obfuscant · · Score: 5, Informative

      I don't feel that was misleading. When somebody says that they towed their car, I do not assume that they put it on it's roof to do so.

      And when they include the weight of the car in the statement, they are implying that the weight of the vehicle is somehow relevant.

      The main hurdle to "pulling" something is the friction, not the mass. If you put the Eiffel Tower on a set of rollers that had the equivalent rolling resistance that a 3900 pound car has, I betcha six people could pull it, too. If the brakes aren't on, one person can push a loaded railroad car. And if you use levers and pulleys (machines) for assistance, you can pull a lot.

      At many county fairs there used to be a popular show called "the tractor pull". People would compete in pulling a loaded sled with their tractors. They'd all start out able to pull the sled, but as the sled moved forward, so did a large weight that increased the friction between the sled and the ground. Only the beefier tractors could pull it the full distance, but all of them could pull it.

  2. It's all fun and games... by Etherwalk · · Score: 3, Funny

    It's all fun and games until somebody loses an Eiffel Tower and three statutes of liberty.

    1. Re:It's all fun and games... by LynnwoodRooster · · Score: 2

      I don't understand the comparison. Now if it was in libraries of Congress, I'd get it.

      --
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    2. Re:It's all fun and games... by XxtraLarGe · · Score: 2

      How much does the Library of Congress weigh?

      Oh, about 6 lbs, according to this blog post. Now, they didn't say it weight 6 lbs., but I used the bullet point that stated

      ."..it is estimated that the entire collection of the Library of Congress including photos, sound recordings and movies might take 3,000 TB of storage. Assuming $100 each for 2 TB hard drives, the entire book collection of the Library of Congress could be stored on about $1500 worth of hard drives at today's prices." LINK

      I looked up 2 GB external HDs and picked one at random. This Seagate Express 2 TB External HD weighs 6.4 oz.

      Hence, 15 2TB HDs at 6.4 oz. each, divided by 16 oz/lb = 6 lbs.

      --
      Taking guns away from the 99% gives the 1% 100% of the power.
    3. Re:It's all fun and games... by Overzeetop · · Score: 2

      I don't see an issue - the Eiffel Tower and the Statue of Liberty were both created by the French. Seems absolutely logical.

      --
      Is it just my observation, or are there way too many stupid people in the world?
    4. Re:It's all fun and games... by amicusNYCL · · Score: 3, Funny

      Next you need to explain how you fit 3,000TB on 15 2TB drives.

      --
      "Our two-party system is like a bowl of shit looking at itself in a mirror." - Lewis Black
    5. Re:It's all fun and games... by Coren22 · · Score: 2

      They have a conversion rate to African Swallows, but the conversion between Swallow types is not standardized.

      --
      APK likes to ask for responses to the same things over and over. Maybe he just likes the responses?
    6. Re:It's all fun and games... by penguinoid · · Score: 3, Funny

      How many station wagons would it take to haul 600 lbs worth of 2 TB drives?

      Less than 1.

      If you have less than one car, it might not carry as much as you were hoping.

      --
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  3. Not that tiny by wonkey_monkey · · Score: 3, Interesting

    6 Tiny Robotic Ants

    They're not tiny if you're comparing them with ants.

    --
    systemd is Roko's Basilisk.
  4. Terrible summary by burtosis · · Score: 5, Interesting

    F=ma so if a is small then F, the force from the robots, can also be small. With over inflated tires and a smooth flat surface the rolling friction F needs to overcome can be quite small. Even a small child could push a 3900lb vehicle under the right circumstances. It would be far more useful (and less impressive to the masses) if an actual figure of force was given, much less any other relevant information.

    1. Re:Terrible summary by Jason+Levine · · Score: 4, Informative

      From the paper ( http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/xpl/articleDetails.jsp?reload=true&arnumber=7407333&contentType=Early+Access+Articles linked to in the summary ):

      We present a simple statistical model to predict the maximum pulling force available from robot teams. The expected performance is a function of interactions between each robot and the ground (e.g. whether running or walking). We confirm the model with experiments involving impulsive bristlebots, small walking and running hexapods, and 17 gram Tugs that employ adhesion instead of friction. With attention to load sharing, each Tug can operate at its individual limit so that a team of six pulls with forces exceeding 200 N.

      So it looks like the 6 robots can pull with 200 Newtons of force

      --
      My sci-fi novel, Ghost Thief, is now available from Amazon.com.
    2. Re:Terrible summary by Coren22 · · Score: 2

      Hey, he was a scientist, we don't exactly prize them on their strength...

      --
      APK likes to ask for responses to the same things over and over. Maybe he just likes the responses?
  5. Standford? by by+(1706743) · · Score: 2

    Apparently they beat MIDT, Hardvard, and the like...

  6. please, stop. think of what youre doing... by nimbius · · Score: 2

    This kind of technology might seem inconsequential, heck, even beneficial in the 21st century. I come to you from the future, the year 2143...and I beg you, do not unleash this pandoras box. our world is much like your own, except for a highway of autonomous --some say even sentient -- high speed statues of torchwoman --you know her as the statue of liberty -- rivaled in terror only by their helltower counterparts as they blaze across the wasteland once known as "texus" and "Cauli-forgnia." Most cower in fear of their herds, others worship them as signs of bountiful harvest or the approach of the cadmium rains. these are the new gods of our foul world, and we have only you to blame.

    --
    Good people go to bed earlier.
  7. Husband Relief by sycodon · · Score: 2

    I foresee a HUGE market of moving furniture to location after location in various rooms as wives figure out the best arrangement, thereby saving countless backs.

    --
    When Fascism comes to America, it will call itself Anti-Fascism, and tell you to give up your guns.
  8. Re:...and in standard SI units... by Flavianoep · · Score: 2

    SI Units? Really? I'd rather have it in football fields, or perhaps compare to an arbitrary number of cars.

    6 tiny robotic ants, weighting 0.056 cars in total, pull one car worth of a car.

    --
    Linux is for people who don't mind RTFM.
  9. New unit system needed by mschaffer · · Score: 3, Insightful

    We probably need a new system of units for explaining things to non-technical people:
              1 car-pull (symbol Cp): ? newtons
              1 football field us (Ff-US): 1000 yards
              1 Blue Whale (Whb): 30 meters
              Sun temperature (Tps): 5000C

    1. Re:New unit system needed by Sax+Russell+5449D29A · · Score: 5, Funny

      My personal favorites:

      • 1 inch: 2.54 cm
      • 1 foot: 30.48 cm
      • 1 foot pound: 1.36 joules
      • 1 ounce: 28.35 grams
      • 1 pint: 0.47 liters
      --
      -SR
  10. Incorrect statements .... by King_TJ · · Score: 2

    Not saying the achievement isn't notable ... but pulling a vehicle isn't quite as difficult as they want you to believe.

    Here's a video of a girl in Morocco pulling a car by her pony-tail!

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?...

  11. Re:Are they using....suction cups? by KGIII · · Score: 2

    Gotta be honest here... That's a fuck of a lot better than any robot that I've made. How about you, what is the power:weight ratio for your robot?

    --
    "So long and thanks for all the fish."