/ News
Naro-nanin educational robot fish takes a dip
A new breed of robot fish that is both relatively inexpensive and highly customizable is teaching students between the ages of 10 and 18 about technology and biology. It's the latest in a line of biologically-inspired underwater robots developed within the naro (nautical robots) project at ETH Zurich (Swiss Federal Institute of Technology), which has previously developed robots based on tuna fish and sea turtles.
Stefan Bertschi, who leads a school outreach program to promote young talent and raise awareness of the university's programs, approached the naro team with the idea of an edutainment robot based on the tuna fish robot they had developed. Fast forward 4 months and the prototypes were swimming in a pool thanks to financial backing from the Swiss Academy of Engineering Technology and the naro team's expertise.
"Our goal is to teach students different skills in the areas of biology, mathematics, physics, and computer science," explains Cédric Siegenthaler, Project Leader of the naro (nautical robot) team at ETH Zurich. "They learn by playing and by combinations of scientific, technical, design, and artistic components. Depending on the age and level of the kids, naro-nanins can be configured with fins or fully open for kids that want to program the motion parameters themselves."
The naro-nanin's body consists of an anodized aluminum frame surrounding a polycarbonate tube. Inside, a plexiglass structure contains a Raspberry Pi running Linux and ROS as its main controller, a Li-Po battery that lasts about 2 hours, and a pump that fills a diving cylinder. The whole package weighs 7 kg (15 lb) and is 50 cm (19.6 in) long.
The kit comes with a set of fins, but students are encouraged to make their own. Different "species" can be created by changing the size and shape of the fins and placing them anywhere on the robot's body. The fins are connected to four attachable actuator modules that contain two standard Hitec servo motors (for flapping and fin rotation). These, and playful decorations, can be freely positioned along the aluminum frames using Lego Technic connectors.
Students can experiment and see how fin size, shape, and placement on the robot's body affect its speed and control. For example, they'll quickly learn that if the robot's weight isn't balanced correctly it will have difficulty swimming properly. And they'll learn about buoyancy and gravity, and how certain species of fish use a swimming bladder to dive and control depth. They can also hold competitions to see which design swims the fastest or is the most agile.
A pressure sensor detects the robot's depth, while an inertial measurement unit senses and returns its pose to an Android app. A camera module is currently in the works that will allow you to see from its perspective, making underwater navigation easier. Currently the robot is remotely-controlled using a Bluetooth game pad, but once the Android app is completed, multiple robots will be controlled with tablets that communicate via a wireless base station at the pool.
"Unfortunately, Switzerland is not blessed with ocean access and thus does not have a strong industry interested in ROVs [remotely-operated vehicles, such as the Giant Crabster] or AUVs [autonomous underwater vehicles, such as Grace]," says Siegenthaler. "We are searching for possible supporters and investors. But for now, we build the naro-nanins for schools and we pursue research projects with naro-tartaruga."
If there's demand, the project could be commercialized. The naro-nanin robot could cost as little as US$2,000 to $2,500 depending on what is included in the final specs, and its production costs. Naro's other projects, like the naro-tartaruga, are working towards autonomy and may help the local police to detect objects at the bottom of lakes.
You can see some naro-nanins swimming in the video below.
Source: http://www.gizmag.com/naro-nanin-robot-fish/28309/
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Founded by Russian entrepreneur Dmitry Itskov in February 2011 with the participation of leading Russian specialists in the field of neural interfaces, robotics, artificial organs and systems.
The main goals of the 2045 Initiative: the creation and realization of a new strategy for the development of humanity which meets global civilization challenges; the creation of optimale conditions promoting the spiritual enlightenment of humanity; and the realization of a new futuristic reality based on 5 principles: high spirituality, high culture, high ethics, high science and high technologies.
The main science mega-project of the 2045 Initiative aims to create technologies enabling the transfer of a individual’s personality to a more advanced non-biological carrier, and extending life, including to the point of immortality. We devote particular attention to enabling the fullest possible dialogue between the world’s major spiritual traditions, science and society.
A large-scale transformation of humanity, comparable to some of the major spiritual and sci-tech revolutions in history, will require a new strategy. We believe this to be necessary to overcome existing crises, which threaten our planetary habitat and the continued existence of humanity as a species. With the 2045 Initiative, we hope to realize a new strategy for humanity's development, and in so doing, create a more productive, fulfilling, and satisfying future.
The "2045" team is working towards creating an international research center where leading scientists will be engaged in research and development in the fields of anthropomorphic robotics, living systems modeling and brain and consciousness modeling with the goal of transferring one’s individual consciousness to an artificial carrier and achieving cybernetic immortality.
An annual congress "The Global Future 2045" is organized by the Initiative to give platform for discussing mankind's evolutionary strategy based on technologies of cybernetic immortality as well as the possible impact of such technologies on global society, politics and economies of the future.
Future prospects of "2045" Initiative for society
2015-2020
The emergence and widespread use of affordable android "avatars" controlled by a "brain-computer" interface. Coupled with related technologies “avatars’ will give people a number of new features: ability to work in dangerous environments, perform rescue operations, travel in extreme situations etc.
Avatar components will be used in medicine for the rehabilitation of fully or partially disabled patients giving them prosthetic limbs or recover lost senses.
2020-2025
Creation of an autonomous life-support system for the human brain linked to a robot, ‘avatar’, will save people whose body is completely worn out or irreversibly damaged. Any patient with an intact brain will be able to return to a fully functioning bodily life. Such technologies will greatly enlarge the possibility of hybrid bio-electronic devices, thus creating a new IT revolution and will make all kinds of superimpositions of electronic and biological systems possible.
2030-2035
Creation of a computer model of the brain and human consciousness with the subsequent development of means to transfer individual consciousness onto an artificial carrier. This development will profoundly change the world, it will not only give everyone the possibility of cybernetic immortality but will also create a friendly artificial intelligence, expand human capabilities and provide opportunities for ordinary people to restore or modify their own brain multiple times. The final result at this stage can be a real revolution in the understanding of human nature that will completely change the human and technical prospects for humanity.
2045
This is the time when substance-independent minds will receive new bodies with capacities far exceeding those of ordinary humans. A new era for humanity will arrive! Changes will occur in all spheres of human activity – energy generation, transportation, politics, medicine, psychology, sciences, and so on.
Today it is hard to imagine a future when bodies consisting of nanorobots will become affordable and capable of taking any form. It is also hard to imagine body holograms featuring controlled matter. One thing is clear however: humanity, for the first time in its history, will make a fully managed evolutionary transition and eventually become a new species. Moreover, prerequisites for a large-scale expansion into outer space will be created as well.
Key elements of the project in the future
• International social movement
• social network immortal.me
• charitable foundation "Global Future 2045" (Foundation 2045)
• scientific research centre "Immortality"
• business incubator
• University of "Immortality"
• annual award for contribution to the realization of the project of "Immortality”.
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