A robot made of robots: Emergent transport and control of a smarticle ensemble
A robot made of robots: Emergent transport and control of a smarticle ensemble
复制标题
DOI：
10.1126/scirobotics.aax4316
复制
发表时间：
2019-09
期刊：
影响因子：
25
通讯作者：
W. Savoie;Thomas A. Berrueta;Zachary Jackson;Ana Pervan;Ross Warkentin;Shengkai Li;T. Murphey;K. Wiesenfeld;D. Goldman
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
W. Savoie;Thomas A. Berrueta;Zachary Jackson;Ana Pervan;Ross Warkentin;Shengkai Li;T. Murphey;K. Wiesenfeld;D. Goldman
实现了由随机交互的静止机器人组成的集体机器人的定向运动。机器人的运动通常是通过协调集成单一用途的组件来产生的，如执行器、传感器、身体部分和肢体。我们假设，某些未来的机器人可以使用部件及其相互作用的划分不太清楚的系统进行自我推进，成为由冗余和通用的功能部件组成的健壮而灵活的实体，这些功能部件可以随机交互。由于合成技术通常假定已知的输入-输出关系，因此对这种集体的控制成为一项挑战。为了发现建造和控制这种未来机器人的原理，我们研究了一个模型机器人物理系统：周期性变形的智能、活跃粒子的平面集合-Smarticle。当被封闭时，这些单独静止的机器人可以通过随机的机械相互作用进行集体扩散。我们从实验和理论上证明了这种超分子的定向漂移可以通过单个Smartiles的失活来实现，并利用这一现象来产生内源性趋光性。通过数值模拟智能结节活动和运输之间的关系，我们从少量数据-单个实验试验-阐明了智能结节失活对超结节动力学的作用。从这个映射中，我们证明了超级大理石可以在平面上的任何地方被外源操纵，扩展了超级大理石的能力，同时实现了分散的闭环控制。我们认为，Smarticle模型系统可能有助于发现一类未来的“随机”机器人可以依靠集体内部机械相互作用来执行任务的原理。
Directed locomotion of a collective robot composed of stochastically interacting immotile robots was achieved. Robot locomotion is typically generated by coordinated integration of single-purpose components, like actuators, sensors, body segments, and limbs. We posit that certain future robots could self-propel using systems in which a delineation of components and their interactions is not so clear, becoming robust and flexible entities composed of functional components that are redundant and generic and can interact stochastically. Control of such a collective becomes a challenge because synthesis techniques typically assume known input-output relationships. To discover principles by which such future robots can be built and controlled, we study a model robophysical system: planar ensembles of periodically deforming smart, active particles—smarticles. When enclosed, these individually immotile robots could collectively diffuse via stochastic mechanical interactions. We show experimentally and theoretically that directed drift of such a supersmarticle could be achieved via inactivation of individual smarticles and used this phenomenon to generate endogenous phototaxis. By numerically modeling the relationship between smarticle activity and transport, we elucidated the role of smarticle deactivation on supersmarticle dynamics from little data—a single experimental trial. From this mapping, we demonstrate that the supersmarticle could be exogenously steered anywhere in the plane, expanding supersmarticle capabilities while simultaneously enabling decentralized closed-loop control. We suggest that the smarticle model system may aid discovery of principles by which a class of future “stochastic” robots can rely on collective internal mechanical interactions to perform tasks.