fischertechnik COMPUTING ROBO MOBILE SET 8 Mode D'emploi page 33

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■ But why do we need mobile robots? Lets try to apply the behavior of our "imaginary moth" to
technical devices. A simple example for this is light-seeking behavior. We modify the light source by
attaching a bright strip, a guideline, to the floor and align the sensors to face not forward but
downward. With the help of such guidelines a mobile robot can find its way in a warehouse for
example. Additional information at specific points along the line, in the form of a bar code for example,
direct the robot to perform further actions at these locations such as picking up or dropping a pallet.
In fact such robot systems are already in existence today. In large hospitals it is often necessary to cover
long distances for the transportation of consumable supplies such as bed linens. It is time-consuming
and expensive to have the nursing staff transport these materials and often requires hard physical labor.
Additionally performing such tasks reduces the time available to take care of patients.
■ For the last couple of years scientists have begun to deal with
another from of movement that is very common in nature, walking
or running. Robots have been developed that have the ability to
move about on legs. The electropneumatic walking robot "Achille"
that was developed by the royal military academy in Brussels is an
example of a six-legged walking robot. Equipped with one camera
above and one on each of the six legs, this robot is designed to be
able to react mechanically to raised or sunk obstacles (objects or
holes).
Such walking machines can be deployed everywhere where
wheeled and track vehicles don't have much of a chance, such as
rough or soft terrain, for climbing over obstacles, ascending stairs,
surmounting ditches or for operation in inaccessible or dangerous
areas in nuclear power plants, mining tunnels or during rescue
operations.
It is easy to recognize that mobile robots can play an important role in modern society.
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