MSGID: 1:317/3 6448a8e8   
   PID: hpt/lnx 1.9.0-cur 2019-01-08   
   TID: hpt/lnx 1.9.0-cur 2019-01-08   
    Jellyfish-like robots could one day clean up the world's oceans    
      
     Date:   
         April 25, 2023   
     Source:   
         Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems   
     Summary:   
         Roboticists have developed a jellyfish-inspired underwater robot   
         with which they hope one day to collect waste from the bottom of   
         the ocean.   
      
         The almost noise-free prototype can trap objects underneath its   
         body without physical contact, thereby enabling safe interactions   
         in delicate environments such as coral reefs. Jellyfish-Bot could   
         become an important tool for environmental remediation.   
      
      
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   FULL STORY   
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   Most of the world is covered in oceans, which are unfortunately highly   
   polluted. One of the strategies to combat the mounds of waste found   
   in these very sensitive ecosystems -- especially around coral reefs --   
   is to employ robots to master the cleanup. However, existing underwater   
   robots are mostly bulky with rigid bodies, unable to explore and sample   
   in complex and unstructured environments, and are noisy due to electrical   
   motors or hydraulic pumps. For a more suitable design, scientists at   
   the Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems (MPI-IS) in Stuttgart   
   looked to nature for inspiration.   
      
   They configured a jellyfish-inspired, versatile, energy-efficient   
   and nearly noise-free robot the size of a hand. Jellyfish-Bot is a   
   collaboration between the Physical Intelligence and Robotic Materials   
   departments at MPI-IS. "A Versatile Jellyfish-like Robotic Platform   
   for Effective Underwater Propulsion and Manipulation" was published in   
   Science Advances.   
      
   To build the robot, the team used electrohydraulic actuators through which   
   electricity flows. The actuators serve as artificial muscles which power   
   the robot. Surrounding these muscles are air cushions as well as soft and   
   rigid components which stabilize the robot and make it waterproof. This   
   way, the high voltage running through the actuators cannot contact the   
   surrounding water. A power supply periodically provides electricity   
   through thin wires, causing the muscles to contract and expand. This   
   allows the robot to swim gracefully and to create swirls underneath   
   its body.   
      
   "When a jellyfish swims upwards, it can trap objects along its path as   
   it creates currents around its body. In this way, it can also collect   
   nutrients.   
      
   Our robot, too, circulates the water around it. This function is useful   
   in collecting objects such as waste particles. It can then transport the   
   litter to the surface, where it can later be recycled. It is also able to   
   collect fragile biological samples such as fish eggs. Meanwhile, there   
   is no negative impact on the surrounding environment. The interaction   
   with aquatic species is gentle and nearly noise-free," Tianlu Wang   
   explains. He is a postdoc in the Physical Intelligence Department at   
   MPI-IS and first author of the publication.   
      
   His co-author Hyeong-Joon Joo from the Robotic Materials Department   
   continues: "70% of marine litter is estimated to sink to the   
   seabed. Plastics make up more than 60% of this litter, taking hundreds   
   of years to degrade. Therefore, we saw an urgent need to develop a robot   
   to manipulate objects such as litter and transport it upwards. We hope   
   that underwater robots could one day assist in cleaning up our oceans."   
   Jellyfish-Bots are capable of moving and trapping objects without physical   
   contact, operating either alone or with several in combination. Each   
   robot works faster than other comparable inventions, reaching a speed   
   of up to 6.1 cm/s. Moreover, Jellyfish-Bot only requires a low input   
   power of around 100 mW.   
      
   And it is safe for humans and fish should the polymer material insulating   
   the robot one day be torn apart. Meanwhile, the noise from the robot   
   cannot be distinguished from background levels. In this way Jellyfish-Bot   
   interacts gently with its environment without disturbing it -- much like   
   its natural counterpart.   
      
   The robot consists of several layers: some stiffen the robot, others   
   serve to keep it afloat or insulate it. A further polymer layer functions   
   as a floating skin. Electrically powered artificial muscles known as   
   HASELs are embedded into the middle of the different layers. HASELs   
   are liquid dielectric-filled plastic pouches that are partially covered   
   by electrodes. Applying a high voltage across an electrode charges it   
   positively, while surrounding water is charged negatively. This generates   
   a force between positively-charged electrode and negatively-charged water   
   that pushes the oil inside the pouches back and forth, causing the pouches   
   to contract and relax -- resembling a real muscle. HASELs can sustain   
   the high electrical stresses generated by the charged electrodes and   
   are protected against water by an insulating layer. This is important,   
   as HASEL muscles were never before used to build an underwater robot.   
      
   The first step was to develop Jellyfish-Bot with one electrode with   
   six fingers or arms. In the second step, the team divided the single   
   electrode into separated groups to independently actuate them.   
      
   "We achieved grasping objects by making four of the arms function as a   
   propeller, and the other two as a gripper. Or we actuated only a subset   
   of the arms, in order to steer the robot in different directions. We   
   also looked into how we can operate a collective of several robots. For   
   instance, we took two robots and let them pick up a mask, which is very   
   difficult for a single robot alone. Two robots can also cooperate in   
   carrying heavy loads. However, at this point, our Jellyfish-Bot needs   
   a wire. This is a drawback if we really want to use it one day in the   
   ocean," Hyeong-Joon Joo says.   
      
   Perhaps wires powering robots will soon be a thing of the past. "We aim to   
   develop wireless robots. Luckily, we have achieved the first step towards   
   this goal. We have incorporated all the functional modules like the   
   battery and wireless communication parts so as to enable future wireless   
   manipulation," Tianlu Wang continues. The team attached a buoyancy   
   unit at the top of the robot and a battery and microcontroller to the   
   bottom. They then took their invention for a swim in the pond of the Max   
   Planck Stuttgart campus, and could successfully steer it along. So far,   
   however, they could not direct the wireless robot to change course and   
   swim the other way.   
      
       * RELATED_TOPICS   
             o Plants_&_Animals   
                   # Sea_Life # Marine_Biology # Fisheries   
             o Matter_&_Energy   
                   # Robotics_Research # Engineering # Vehicles   
             o Earth_&_Climate   
                   # Energy_and_the_Environment # Water #   
                   Environmental_Issues   
             o Computers_&_Math   
                   # Robotics # Artificial_Intelligence # Neural_Interfaces   
       * RELATED_TERMS   
             o Jellyfish o Artificial_reef o Dinoflagellate o Robot o   
             Octopus o Robot_calibration o Friction o Coral_reef   
      
   ==========================================================================   
   Story Source: Materials provided by   
   Max_Planck_Institute_for_Intelligent_Systems. Note: Content may be edited   
   for style and length.   
      
      
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   Journal Reference:   
      1. Tianlu Wang, Hyeong-Joon Joo, Shanyuan Song, Wenqi Hu, Christoph   
         Keplinger, Metin Sitti. A versatile jellyfish-like robotic platform   
         for effective underwater propulsion and manipulation. Science   
         Advances, 2023; 9 (15) DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adg0292   
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   Link to news story:   
   https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/04/230425111232.htm   
      
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