Re: Walkers

The US navy is also working with a new walking minesweeper, designed
after a 
ctrab.	The sideways shuffling mition gives it greater stability, and
allows 
it to cover the seabed more thoroughly.  In addition, it is designed to
mork 
when flipped upside down by surf - it simply rotates it's legs and keeps

going.

Brian

"The Irish are the only race of people on Earth for which psychoanalysis
is 
of no use."

				 - S. Freud

>From: "Tommy" <chuczek@wp.pl>
>Reply-To: gzg-l@csua.berkeley.edu
>To: <gzg-l@csua.berkeley.edu>
>Subject: Re: Walkers
>Date: Mon, 26 Nov 2001 21:25:58 +0100
>
>Hi
>
>A few days ago I saw in TV a programme about animal and floral
inspiration 
>in modern engineering. As one of the example was shown Mars mission
ground 
>vehicle, which has being developed. Mars enviroment is not suitable for

>wheeled vehicles, cause of big boulders density. So the other type of 
>chassis is needed. scientiscs took lobster as a base cause his legs can
be 
>twisted in almost every position. It is very helpful for them in life 
>(lobsters of course). Engineers have made mechanical lobster (I don`t 
>remember number of legs, but it was a lot of them). Next they put
lobster 
>in one aquarium and model in second one. They put on real lobster
receptors 
>of leg movement and was sending a signals to the mechanical, so it
copied 
>movement. Model gets knowledge by experience. Scientists put in a basin

>obstacles, so mechanical lobster was getting knowledge about crossing
them. 
>They has been gathering informations about perception of real lobster,
so 
>(i think) mechanical lobster can predict way of crossing visible
obstacles.
>
>Movement of mechanism was pretty good, but whole thing was put in a
water, 
>so it could be easier to move.
>
>So, maybe use of walkers can be justified on some planets.
>
>Bye
>
>

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