It can be challenging to create a robot with the ability to navigate different terrains, but creating one that has two different modes of locomotion can be more complex.
This makes the Deployable Air-Land Exploration Robot (DALER), which can both fly and walk, truly remarkable.
The robot, which was made by researchers from the National Centre of Competence in Research (NCCR) Robotics division in Switzerland, was inspired by vampire bats and is designed to help rescue victims in dangerous sites after a natural calamity or disaster.
Scientists believe that as a rescue bot, the DALER is equipped with the ability to find and reach disaster victims in search and rescue operations given its ability to move in more than one way.
Just like a vampire bat, the DALER can shift from flying through the air to crawling on the ground when necessary. The robot walks using its wings, which can contract and expand as required, to shift between walking to flying and vice versa.
With its flying ability, the DALER can conduct surveys from the air during rescue efforts. It can also land to rescue disaster victims or provide assistance.
Inspired by the bat design, the wings of the robots can also partially fold. The creators had to design the DALER to have wings that can retract, and they have accomplished this using a flexible skin and a simple motor.
Despite the fact that it has two methods of locomotion, the DALER's wings were the first ones to be designed because the primary function of the robot is to fly.
Although DALER is not yet close to actually being deployed, the design serves as another good example of how effective it is to take inspiration from real animals when it comes to building next-generation machines.
Some engineers have also patterned the design of their robots after the physique, ingenuity and unique capabilities of cheetah and snakes, making their robots a fusion of natural wonder and technological innovation.
"The robot's design is inspired by the common vampire bat Desmodus rotundus, which can perform aerial and terrestrial locomotion with limited trade-offs," wrote Ludovic Daler from the Laboratory of Intelligent Systems at Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) in Switzerland, and colleagues, who described the DALER in a study published in the journal Bioinspiration and Biomimetics on Jan. 19. "Wings' adaptive morphology allows the robot to modify the shape of its body in order to increase its efficiency during terrestrial locomotion."
See how the DALER works in this video below:
