Robot rat

A team of scientists have developed a robot rat that can seek out and identify objects using its whiskers.

Researchers from the Bristol Robotics Lab (BRL), (a partnership between Bristol University and the University of the West of England) and Sheffield University developed the SCRATCHbot as part of the pan-European ICEA project to develop biologically-inspired artificial intelligence systems.

The system was inspired by the use of touch in the animal kingdom. In nocturnal creatures, or those that inhabit poorly-lit places, this physical sense is widely preferred to vision as a primary means of discovering the world.

Rats are especially effective at exploring their environments using their whiskers. They are able to accurately determine the position, shape and texture of objects using precise rhythmic sweeping movements of their whiskers, make rapid accurate decisions about objects, and then use the information to build environmental maps.

Robot designs often rely on vision to identify objects, but this new technology relies solely on touch technology, enabling the robot to function in spaces such as dark or smoke-filled rooms, where vision cannot be used.