Tiny Micro Robots Build Things in ‘Microfactory’
The teenie-weeniest robot uprising ever might be sooner rather than later due to the work of research institute SRI. Don’t let these microbots’ size fool you, there is power in numbers and thousands of the robots can work together to perform tasks at dizzying speed.From ReCode.net:SRI International has developed a new generation of ant-like robots that can work as a coordinated swarm of miniature builders.The research powerhouse says the bots can construct lightweight, high-strength structures; handle tiny electrical components; carry out chemistry on a chip; and perform many other manufacturing tasks. Eventually, they expect that the machines, the smallest of which are no thicker than a dime, will even be able to build smaller versions of themselves.SRI has already demonstrated the ability to make more than 1,000 of the robots work together at once.“The vision is to have an army of ants under your control,” said Annjoe Wong-Foy, senior research engineer at the Menlo Park, Calif., institute.SRI has worked with DARPA in past, securing an ’undisclosed amount of money’ to develop the "MicroFactory for Macro Products" project.Size Matters NotBecause of their tiny scale, microbots can be made inexpensively and in great numbers to navigate and explore environments which are small or dangerous. They’re hoped to be used in disaster zones to search for survivors, and in manufacturing (and really, their use can be as varied and widespread as their creators can imagine) but the applications of surveillance and use as a military ’force multiplier’ is obvious.DemocracyNow highlights the use of tiny mini-drones in surveillance:
The FBI confirmed this week that drones are "very seldomly" carrying out surveillance within the United States, without regulations in place to address privacy concerns.The reality is that a mini robot uprising is far less dangerous than the things that are currently being planned with the tech by the humans who control them.By Elizabeth Leafloor, Red Ice Creations
