In recent years we have seen the manufacture of all kinds of robotic versions associated with animals: bees and various insects, fish, dogs… now it is the turn of rats.
A team of scientists from the Beijing Institute of Technology has unveiled this four-legged robot called SQuRo (Small-Sized Quadrupedal Robotic Rat), a small rat that can crouch, stand, walk, crawl and turn like a real mouse, and can even carry a load equivalent to 91% of its own weight.
According to the researchers, rats have been a key inspiration for many developers when it comes to robotics. Let us remember that they are experts in passing through narrow spaces thanks to their elongated and thin bodies and their incredible agility.
Studying cave rats
In the prototype experiment, the robot rat has been able to overcome obstacles 30 millimeters high (which is 33% of its own height) with a success rate of 70% . In a final experiment, SQuRo was able to right himself after falling on his side.
The robot has two degrees of freedom in each limb , as well as in the waist and head, allowing its spine to move with the flexibility of a real rat.
“SQuRo can achieve constant locomotion even after carrying a load equivalent to 91% of its own weight, demonstrating its superior payload-carrying ability compared to small-sized quadrupedal robots,” the researchers explained.
How tall is the robot rat?
Currently, the robot is 19 cm long and weighs 220 grams ; It runs on a rechargeable solar battery that lasts 30 minutes and is remotely controlled via WiFi using a computer or phone.
“To our knowledge, SQuRo is the first small-sized quadrupedal robot of this scale that is capable of five modes of movement, including crouching to stand up, walking, crawling, turning, and recovering from falls ,” Professor and Deputy Director of the intelligent robotics institute of the Beijing Institute of Technology and leader of the study published by the journal IEEE Transactions on Robotics.
When will it be available?
According to experts, the robot rat will be able to be commercialized as early as 2025. In the meantime, they will continue to improve the device, including increasing its agility, installing more sensors for field testing in narrow unstructured pipes, and making the machines airtight.
“ Robot rodents can be sent into the rubble of earthquakes or collapsed buildings where the wreckage forms too narrow a space for rescuers to enter. It can provide emergency rations to people trapped under the rubble of a disaster,” Shi said.
In general, the robot could cope with all kinds of weather and terrain conditions, according to the Chinese state-run newspaper People’s Daily .
Reference: Qing Shi, Junhui Gao et al. Development of a Small-Sized Quadruped Robotic Rat Capable of Multimodal MotionsPublisher: IEEE IEEE Transactions on Robotics, 7 April 2022 DOI: 10.1109/TRO.2022.3159188
