Researchers at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (BGU) unveils AmphiSTAR, a high-speed amphibious robot inspired by the cockroach and basilisk lizard. This palm-sized robot is capable of crawling at high speed (3.3mph) or hover over water (1.5 m/s). It doesn’t have to be flat land, as it can easily traverse gravel, mud, dirt, grass and concrete. This robot comes equipped with four propellers that can tilt the axes using a sprawl mechanism, while two gas tanks enable it to float.
Practical applications include for agricultural purposes, search & rescue, and excavation expeditions that could require one to crawl as well as swim. What could make it even more useful? Possibly adding some rotors for flight.
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Our future research will focus on the scalability of the robot and on underwater swimming,” said Dr. David Zarrouk, director, Bioinspired and Medical Robotics Laboratory in BGU’s Department of Mechanical Engineering in a statement.
