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The humble snail, trailed by its ribbon of slime, now has its first robotic counterpart in research at MIT that could lead to new forms of locomotion for machines. Assistant Professor Annette "Peko" Hosoi and her colleagues in the Mechanical Engineering Department — graduate student Brian Chan, undergrads Susan Ji and Catherine Koveal — demonstrate and explain their unique robotic research platform. The models, RoboSnails I and II, each consist of electronics aboard a rubber "foot" about si ...More

The humble snail, trailed by its ribbon of slime, now has its first robotic counterpart in research at MIT that could lead to new forms of locomotion for machines. Assistant Professor Annette "Peko" Hosoi and her colleagues in the Mechanical Engineering Department — graduate student Brian Chan, undergrads Susan Ji and Catherine Koveal — demonstrate and explain their unique robotic research platform. The models, RoboSnails I and II, each consist of electronics aboard a rubber "foot" about six inches long by one inch wide. The robots glide over a thin film of "mucus," or silicon oil. The two were created to test mathematical simulations describing forms of snail locomotion. The research could give insights into common biological systems such as blood flow through a vein. Craig Milanesi, AMPS Video Production Manager, shot nature videos of woodland snails and large slugs for this news release produced by the MIT News Office. ...Less