Innovation

Photos: Prototype robots

By · September 28, 2006, 10:59 PM PST · billdetwiler

Image 1 of 4

  • These "gears" are covered with electromagnets or half-capacitors. When placed next to each other, they will cause each other to spin, depending on the state of the magnet, and propel each other.

    Michael Kanellos/CNET News.com

  • A set of actuator stacks in action. The two cylinders do not contain any moving parts. Through the magic of Moore's Law, researchers believe they can coat a sphere less than a millimeter in diameter with several microscopic actuators. These beads could then form an intelligent fabric.

    Michael Kanellos/CNET News.com

  • A closeup of one of the actuators.

    Michael Kanellos/CNET News.com

  • This, essentially, is a simulation of a robot spelling bee. The purple shaded area is actually a field of 40,000 simulated robots. They are moving around the holes, represented by black dots. The collective movement transforms five squares of robots and gets them to spell Intel.

    Michael Kanellos/CNET News.com

These "gears" are covered with electromagnets or half-capacitors. When placed next to each other, they will cause each other to spin, depending on the state of the magnet, and propel each other.

Michael Kanellos/CNET News.com

Related Topics:
Innovation Digital Transformation Artificial Intelligence Internet of Things Smart Cities Hardware

By Bill Detwiler

Bill Detwiler is Editor in Chief of TechRepublic and the host of Cracking Open, CNET and TechRepublic's popular online show. Prior to joining TechRepublic in 2000, Bill was an IT manager, database administrator, and desktop support specialist in the ...

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