Gadgets And New Inventions
Wall Climbing Robot
Robotics create interesting gadgets and gizmos. This new invention is no exception because it can actually climb walls.
The robot named ROCR (pronounced "rocker") is an oscillating climbing robot that mimics the motion of human rock climbers and combines it with the motion of apes swinging through trees.
Details of this new tech gadget were published in the journal of Transactions and Mechantronics.
How It Works
The upper body has two steel hand-claws that grip a wall and a tail that swings.
As the tail swings the from side to side the hand-claws reach up, one hand at a time, pulling the body upwards.
When the tail swings it causes a shift in the center of gravity that raises the robots free hand, which then grips the climbing surface.
The ROCR is powered by four 9-volt batteries that are attached to the tail.
"It mimics a gibbon swinging through the trees and a grandfather clock's pendulum, both of which are extremely efficient," says inventor William Provancher, an assistant professor of mechanical engineering at the University of Utah.
Future Use
There are gadgets and new inventions used for inspection, surveillance and even maintenance but Provancher believes the ROCR is be a better alternative.
"Climbing robots have focused on issues such as speed, adhering to the wall, and deciding how and where to move, but ROCR is the first to focus on climbing efficiently," says Provancher.
Sensors and cameras could be mounted on the robot to provide live feeds of inspections. It could look for things like failures in the concrete on dams, buildings and bridges.
Sources: http://heml.eng.utah.edu
Military Robot
This gizmo can jump 30 ft ( 9.1 m) in the air like a flea.
Fleas jump distances that are 100 times their body length at speeds as fast as 6.2 ft (1.9m) per second. A flea uses an elastic protein that is compressed and released like a spring to catapult itself in the air.
This 11 lb. ( 5 kg.) military robot biomimics how a flea jumps by using a piston actuator that similarly converts energy into motion.
This new invention was developed by Boston Dynamics for the US Army's Rapid Equipping Force.
The four-wheeled robot can travel along the ground using an on board camera for navigation.
Using a controllable launch system and laser based ranging, the robot can accomplish precision jumps not only over obstacles, but into windows and onto rooftops.
It's landings are cushioned by it's shock absorbing wheels.
Source:bostondynamics.com
Water Clock
You fill it with water and it operates as any normal LCD digital clock - displaying the date and time in easy to read digits. The water powered clock doesn't require any batteries.
In fact, you can fill it with any pop or fruit juice, even coffee or beer and it will still work. A clear casing allows you to see your beverage of choice inside the clock.
Here is how it works.
The secret is that the water clock is a battery.
Inside is an electrolyte cell with two metal posts.
An electrolyte battery or cell (see: organic battery also: baghdad battery) needs two dissimilar metals - one copper and one zinc - and a connection between them to complete a circuit.
When the posts are immersed in a liquid that conducts electricity (water) then electrons flow from one post to the other creating a current.
The electric current powers the clock. If you add fruit juice, or soda pop, it makes the liquid more conductive.
Source: housewares.org
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