A whiskered robot has been developed by British scientists with the aim of better understanding how some mammals find their way in the dark.
The SCRATCHbot has been designed to mimic the actions of rats, who use physical sensing to explore surroundings that are too dark for their eyes. Rats can accurately determine the position, shape and texture of objects using precise rhythmic sweeping movements of their whiskers. They then make rapid accurate decisions about objects, and use this information to build environmental maps.
Bristol Robotics Lab has now built a robot with whisker-like sensors, which means that it too can operate in environments where there is no light. Potential commercial applications include undersea operations and missions in very dusty conditions, or emergency rescues.
