Scientists have developed creepy-looking robot squirrels with plans to send the ‘creatures’ into space.
The tech is said to represent the dawn of a new frontier to help in the wake of disasters.
One of their upcoming missions is exploring one of Saturn’s moons, called Enceladus, reports Need To Know.
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Robert Full, a professor at UC Berkeley, says utilising the animal’s real-life movements in a robotic replica could take things to a “new level”.
The equivalent of one squirrel jump on Earth equates to travelling the length of a football pitch in space because of a lack of gravity.
The hope is that these new bots will allow humans a tool to navigate “challenging environments”.
“The robots we have now are OK, but how do you take it to the next level?,” said Full, who is also the lead author of the journal on the topic, which was published earlier this month.
“How do you get robots to navigate a challenging environment in a disaster where you have pipes and beams and wires?
“Squirrels could do that, no problem.
“Robots can’t do that.
“Squirrels are nature’s best athletes.
“The way that they can manoeuvre and escape is unbelievable.”
Through a biometrical analysis of squirrel landings, researchers were able to programme robots to carry out similar feats.
This meant teaching them how to catch branches and apply the appropriate level of force to hold onto it.
Justin Yim, a Berkeley graduate and co-author of the research paper, said this was best achieved in robots by giving them one leg – even if it has contributed to a very unconventional-looking squirrel.
Yim said: “One leg is the best number for jumping; you can put the most power into that one leg if you don’t distribute that power among multiple different devices.
“The drawbacks you get from having only one leg lessen as you jump higher.”
The researchers also found that when real-life squirrels land, they essentially do a front handstand.
Yim is now hoping to further develop findings in this area to allow the robot squirrels to jump onto flat surfaces as well as narrow ones.
He added: “The robot is definitely not able to do what a squirrel can do just yet.”
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