Science Fiction
Dictionary
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
 |
Wizard Duct Inspector Robot - Ancestor of Matrix Sentinel
The Wizard, a remote-operated duct-inspecting robot, has won the the Best Engineering Award in Britain in the Knowledge Transfer Partnership 2007 awards. Designed by Breval, a Glasgow-based company, the robot works inside ventilation sytems - just like their remote grandchildren, the robotic Sentinels of the Matrix movies.
(Wizard the duct-inspecting robot)
The Wizard robot has eight wheels, lights and cameras.
"We feel sure that the investment we have made in this direction will in the near future offer many of our existing and new clients a probable solution to ventilation ductwork problems, be they bacterial contamination, refurbishment or poor efficiency, this could be the answer" said Patrick McBride, contracts director of Breval.
When I saw this little guy, I naturally thought about alien robotic organisms inside the walls, having written a story last week about Unwanted Life Forms Abound In Sick Spacecraft, in which micro-organisms were found to flourish inside the walls of the Mir space station.
The Wizard robots are the remote ancestors of the duct-diving robotic Sentinels of the Matrix movies. In the movies, the Sentinels restlessly search the ductwork underlying the Matrix infrastructure, searching for unwanted elements skulking therein (Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne, Carrie-Anne Moss, et al).
(Duct-diving Sentinel robots from The Matrix)
What's inside your walls?
Robots are getting better at working in tight spaces - see these cool bots:
- Snake-Arm Robot In A Plane
Snake-arm robots are going places they had never been before. - Pipeline Explorer Untethered Robotic Snake
The first untethered robot used to inspect underground natural gas distribution pipelines. - Robotic Cable Inspection System
A successful cable inspection robot must overcome many obstacles.
From Wizard the AC robot works magic on judges via Robot Gossip.
Scroll down for more stories in the same category. (Story submitted 5/23/2007)
Follow this kind of news @Technovelgy.| Email | RSS | Blog It | Stumble | del.icio.us | Digg | Reddit |
Would
you like to contribute a story tip?
It's easy:
Get the URL of the story, and the related sf author, and add
it here.
Comment/Join discussion ( 0 )
Related News Stories - (" Robotics ")
Robot Hand Creeps Along, Separate From It's Owner
'The crawling... object was V-Stephen's surgeon-hand...' - Philip K. Dick, 1955.
Korean Exoskeleton Suit F1 Helps You Put It On
'Better late than never.'
Humanoid Robots Spotted In Homes Performing Household Chores
'... nothing was perfected until M. Pantalon announced the completion of his automatic valet.' Arthur Bird, 1899.
Bambot Open Source Cheap Delivery Robot
'Not since the time he rewired the delivery robot...'
Technovelgy (that's tech-novel-gee!) is devoted to the creative science inventions and ideas of sf authors. Look for the Invention Category that interests you, the Glossary, the Invention Timeline, or see what's New.
Science Fiction
Timeline
1600-1899
1900-1939
1940's 1950's
1960's 1970's
1980's 1990's
2000's 2010's
Current News
Robot Hand Creeps Along, Separate From It's Owner
'The crawling... object was V-Stephen's surgeon-hand...'
Taikonauts Exercise In China's Tiangong Space Station
'Joe got out the gravity-simulator harnesses...'
Korean Exoskeleton Suit F1 Helps You Put It On
'Better late than never.'
Have AI Researchers Given Up On 'Bio-Babies'?
'You couldn't have the capstone without the pyramid to hold it up.'
Bunker Busters and Bore-Pellets
'The first revelation of the new Soviet bore-pellets.'
'Spikeless' Brand Swizzle Stick Detects Spiked Drinks
'the unobtrusive inspections with tiny remote-cast snoopers...'
Heart Patches Grown In The Lab Repair Hearts
I'm hoping that this procedure becomes a normal part of medical practice!
Humanoid Robots Spotted In Homes Performing Household Chores
'... nothing was perfected until M. Pantalon announced the completion of his automatic valet.'
Musk Proposes Sites For Martian Cities
'...its streets were of remarkable width, with few or no buildings so high as mosques, churches, State-offices, or palaces in Tellurian cities.'
Bambot Open Source Cheap Delivery Robot
'Not since the time he rewired the delivery robot...'
Robot Collective Acts Like A Smart Material
'...it was all composed of tiny, identical cubes, carefully laid to form a tilelike surface.'
Vipera Electric Skis From Frigid Dynamics
'JOAN strapped on her power-skis...'
Pixel Watch 'Loss of Pulse Detection' And Philip K. Dick
'He carried on his person a triggering mechanism sensitive to his heartbeat.'
Nuclear Plant Restarted To Power AI To Feed Us Dreams
'...Anything was possible in my imaginary environment.'
SpaceX's Starman Tesla Roadster In Space
'Somewhere in space, a chrome and blue automobile raced the green light of Earth.'
Pivotal Blackfly Electric Aircraft Lifts And Hovers
'That explains how it was so easy for me to remain motionless in midair...'
