Scientists have a fascination with taking animals, turning them into robots and making them far more terrifying. DARPA has been doing this for years, and Virginia Tech is joining the movement:
Virginia Tech College of Engineering researchers have unveiled a life-like, autonomous robotic jellyfish the size and weight of a grown man, 5 foot 7 inches in length and weighing 170 pounds, as part of a U.S. Navy-funded project.
The prototype robot, nicknamed Cyro, is a larger model of a robotic jellyfish the same team – headed by Shashank Priya of Blacksburg, Va., and professor of mechanical engineering at Virginia Tech – unveiled in 2012. The earlier robot, dubbed RoboJelly, is roughly the size of a man’s hand, and typical of jellyfish found along beaches.
Virginia Tech: Autonomous Robotic Jellyfish from virginiatech on Vimeo.
I don’t particularly like jellyfish, but this robot looks harmless enough. I doubt it will turn into a nightmare machine like other animal-based robots. Still, the potential is there – the robotic uprising could see these robots being upgraded to man o’ wars.