A Mexican jumping bean-inspired robot has been developed by a team of researchers from the Italian Institute of Technology.
The robot, aptly named BeanBot, is capable of moving without motors, batteries, electronics or onboard computing. Rather, the robot is reliant on its surroundings, adapting according to the surfaces and conditions it encounters. Depending on those conditions, the BeanBot is capable of jumping, rolling, flipping, sliding and climbing slopes.
Source: BSR Bioinspired Soft Robotics lab/YouTube
To enable such movement, the team took inspiration from the Mexican jumping bean, the moves of which are made possible by a moth larva residing inside a seed pod.
The BeanBot is able to mimic the Mexican jumping bean by using a heat-responsive shape-memory alloy spring, a magnet and a lightweight, bean-shaped shell. When heated, the spring suddenly releases stored energy, launching the robot into the air. Its curved and flat sides then interact with the ground to produce different movements.
Using a single heat-powered mechanism, BeanBot can jump up to 30 cm, roll about 80 cm, slide, flip and climb 10° to 18° slopes, with its magnetic force controlling some of these movements.
An article detailing the BeanBot, “Stochastic Locomotion Emerging From Body–Environment Interactions in a Mexican Jumping Bean–Inspired Robot,” appears in the journal Advanced Intelligent Systems.
For more on the BeanBot, watch the accompanying video that appears courtesy of the Italian Institute of Technology.
