US Army Explores Equipping Robots with Living Muscle Tissue
A scientist from the Army Research Lab gave a glimpse into its early work with biohybrid robotics.
Looking to pave the way for the production of nimble robots that can move more like living creatures than bulky androids, Army Research Laboratory scientists are embarking on fresh, high-risk studies in biohybrid robotics that could eventually fuse organic tissue with machines.
“This is wholly new to the lab, and the field itself is still relatively young. The publications associated with the first idea of successfully integrating muscle tissue or cells into some larger architecture to control motion with that same biological device didn t really start until after 2000 and really spooled up in the early 2010s. So it s very young, even as a discipline,” explained Dr. Dean Culver, a research scientist at the laboratory. “And that kind of gave us an opportunity to see how we could help move it forward and what e
Not quite the Terminator, but ‘muscle-bound’ robots are coming for the Army, Marines December 30, 2020 The Legged Squad Support System, or LS3, is demoed by engineers at Fort Devens, Massachusetts. Legged robots such as this are likely to be early candidates for programs looking to add muscle to the machines for better stability and mobility on uneven terrain. (Sgt. Michael Walters/Marine Corps) Army researchers are looking to add muscle tissue to robot platforms, giving them “never before seen mobility and agility.”
The effort by scientists with the Army’s Combat Capabilities Development Command, Army Research Laboratory and Duke University and the University of North Carolina is looking first at adding muscle to legged robot joints rather than using actuators, according to an Army Research Laboratory statement.
18 December 2020, 7:30 am EST By
Army scientists are currently working on a robot that has human-like muscle tissues. This means that robotics clearly has improved for the past few years.
Robots and other types of machines are currently essential, especially since they re in an ongoing global pandemic. Researchers and other experts are using them for medicinal purposes and other tasks.
Military agencies are also taking part in the robotic developments to improve their defenses as well as their offenses. And now, the Army Research Laboratory confirmed that it is working on what it calls robotic systems packed with muscle tissue.
The organization also claimed that the upcoming machine can produce surprising versatility and agility that are never seen before in any machines.
6 ABERDEEN PROVING GROUND, Md. Robotic systems packed with muscle tissue can produce never-seen-before agility and versatility, Army researchers said.
Researchers with the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command, now known as DEVCOM, Army Research Laboratory are teaming with collaborators at Duke University and the University of North Carolina on high-risk studies in biohybrid robotics.
“Though impressive in their own right, today’s robots are deployed to serve a limited purpose then are retrieved some minutes later,” said Dr. Dean Culver, a research scientist at the laboratory. “ARL wants robots to be versatile teammates capable of going anywhere Soldiers can and more, adapting to the needs of any given situation.”
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ABERDEEN PROVING GROUND, Md. Robotic systems packed with muscle tissue can produce never-seen-before agility and versatility, Army researchers said.
Researchers with the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command, now known as DEVCOM, Army Research Laboratory are teaming with collaborators at Duke University and the University of North Carolina on high-risk studies in biohybrid robotics. Though impressive in their own right, today s robots are deployed to serve a limited purpose then are retrieved some minutes later, said Dr. Dean Culver, a research scientist at the laboratory. ARL wants robots to be versatile teammates capable of going anywhere Soldiers can and more, adapting to the needs of any given situation.