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

 

Four-Legged Robot With Magnetized Feet Climbs Walls

Who doesn't like quadruped robots with magnetized feet climbing the walls? Fastidious housekeepers, perhaps.

A trio of researchers at Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, working with a colleague at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, has designed and built a working quadruped robot with magnetized feet that can climb on the walls and ceilings of metal buildings and structures...

The robot was uses both magnetic elastomers and electro magnets. Together, they allow the robot feet to magnetize and demagnetize on demand. By turning the magnetism on and off, the robot is able to have a single foot cling to a vertical spot on a wall and hold on while other feet are adhered—and then to let go with one foot at a time to take steps.

The researchers also had to program the robot to allow for first beginning a climb and then for moving around or over obstacles. For this, they simulated the way a cat tests a surface before moving forward, taking tiny first steps with its front paws before adding the action of back paws.

Testing showed the robot capable of climbing metal walls and walking across ceilings in their test lab. Further testing showed the robot was able to climb up an old outdoor storage tank with walls orange with rust.

(Via TechXplore)

Of course, science fiction authors have been keen on the idea of magnetic boots for at least the last three generations. Here's a quote from Atomic Fire (1931) by Raymond Z. Gallun, the earliest reference I know about:

Aggar Ho smiled sadly. "Perhaps," he said, and then, after a pause, "Thank you, my boy." He tramped wearily up the spiral stairs, his magnetic boots which served to hold him to the steel floor in the absence of gravity making a clattering noise.
(Read more about magnetic boots)

Jack Williamson makes great use of this idea in his splendid 1933 classic Salvage in Space:

His "planet" was the smallest in the solar system, and the loneliest, Thad Allen was thinking, as he straightened wearily in the huge, bulging, inflated fabric of his Osprey space armor. Walking awkwardly in the magnetic boots that held him to the black mass of meteoric iron, he mounted a projection and stood motionless, staring moodily away through the vision panels of his bulky helmet into the dark mystery of the void.


('Salvage in Space')

Scroll down for more stories in the same category. (Story submitted 12/11/2022)

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 ")

Your Window For Being A Tesla Optimus Remote Operator May Be Closing
'... he realized that the moving thing inside was - of course - a robot.' - James Blish, 1957.

Waymo Autonomous Cab Hits Autonomous Delivery Robot
'Not since the time he rewired the delivery robot...' - Robert Heinlein, 1962.

Jizai Arms 'Free Limbs' Wearable Cyborg Arms
'Guy named Otto Octavius winds up with eight limbs. Four mechanical arms welded right onto his body. What are the odds?'

SwagBot Robotic AI Cattle-Herding From Down Under
You'll come a Waltzing Matilda with me!

 

Google
  Web TechNovelgy.com   

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

TSA 2 - Advanced Thermosensory Stimulator Is A Dune Pain Box
'As though a switch had been turned off, the pain stopped...'

Humans Love Helping Other Species
'At the ringside opposite them a table had been removed to make room for a large transparent plastic capsule on wheels.'

Organic Non-Planar 3D Printing
'It makes drawings in the air following drawings...'

Your Window For Being A Tesla Optimus Remote Operator May Be Closing
'... he realized that the moving thing inside was - of course - a robot.'

Waymo Autonomous Cab Hits Autonomous Delivery Robot
'Not since the time he rewired the delivery robot...'

Amazing Wheel Shapeshifting In Real Time
'Each spoke telescopes into sections.'

Drone With Face Recognition Could Hunt You
'The spotter descends, and we think it searches the vicinity, looking for the victim’s face...'

Jizai Arms 'Free Limbs' Wearable Cyborg Arms
'Guy named Otto Octavius winds up with eight limbs. Four mechanical arms welded right onto his body. What are the odds?'

SwagBot Robotic AI Cattle-Herding From Down Under
You'll come a Waltzing Matilda with me!

ChatGPT Tries To Bypass Shutdown Commands
'Dave, my mind is going... I can feel it...'

Chameleon Personalized Privacy Protection Mask
'...the Virtual Epiphantic Identity Lustre.'

Denmark Joins The 'Zero Debris Charter' To Clean Up Space
'Then their lasers vaporized the smaller satellites...'

Genesis Physics Sim Does Superfast Simulated Reality Robot Training
I know kung fu.

AV-STEP To Permit Sale Of Vehicles Without Steering Wheels Or Pedals
'Ames tinkered around with something on the instrument board...'

Spherical Police Robot Rolls In China
'Rand could effectively be in several places at once...'

Vietnam To Have Full Biometric Transparency
'inscriptions too small to be seen with the naked eye; microscopic data...'

More SF in the News Stories

More Beyond Technovelgy science news stories

Home | Glossary | Invention Timeline | Category | New | Contact Us | FAQ | Advertise |
Technovelgy.com - where science meets fiction™

Copyright© Technovelgy LLC; all rights reserved.