Robotics

Bees’ ‘waggle dance’ might revolutionize how robots speak to one another in catastrophe zones

Bees’ ‘waggle dance’ might revolutionize how robots speak to one another in catastrophe zones
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Picture credit score: rtbilder / Shutterstock.com

By Conn Hastings, science author

Honeybees use a classy dance to inform their sisters concerning the location of close by flowers. This phenomenon varieties the inspiration for a type of robot-robot communication that doesn’t depend on digital networks. A latest examine presents a easy method whereby robots view and interpret one another’s actions or a gesture from a human to speak a geographical location. This strategy might show invaluable when community protection is unreliable or absent, reminiscent of in catastrophe zones.

The place are these flowers and the way far-off are they? That is the crux of the ‘waggle dance’ carried out by honeybees to alert others to the situation of nectar-rich flowers. A brand new examine in Frontiers in Robotics and AI has taken inspiration from this method to plot a method for robots to speak. The primary robotic traces a form on the ground, and the form’s orientation and the time it takes to hint it inform the second robotic the required path and distance of journey. The method might show invaluable in conditions the place robotic labor is required however community communications are unreliable, reminiscent of in a catastrophe zone or in house.

Honeybees excel at non-verbal communication

If in case you have ever discovered your self in a loud setting, reminiscent of a manufacturing facility flooring, you’ll have seen that people are adept at speaking utilizing gestures. Properly, we aren’t the one ones. In truth, honeybees take non-verbal communication to a complete new degree.

By wiggling their bottom whereas parading by means of the hive, they’ll let different honeybees know concerning the location of meals. The path of this ‘waggle dance’ lets different bees know the path of the meals with respect to the hive and the solar, and the length of the dance lets them know the way far-off it’s. It’s a easy however efficient method to convey complicated geographical coordinates.

Making use of the dance to robots

This ingenious methodology of communication impressed the researchers behind this newest examine to use it to the world of robotics. Robotic cooperation permits a number of robots to coordinate and full complicated duties. Sometimes, robots talk utilizing digital networks, however what occurs when these are unreliable, reminiscent of throughout an emergency or in distant areas? Furthermore, how can people talk with robots in such a state of affairs?

To deal with this, the researchers designed a visible communication system for robots with on-board cameras, utilizing algorithms that permit the robots to interpret what they see. They examined the system utilizing a easy job, the place a package deal in a warehouse must be moved. The system permits a human to speak with a ‘messenger robotic’, which supervises and instructs a ‘dealing with robotic’ that performs the duty.

Robotic dancing in follow

On this scenario, the human can talk with the messenger robotic utilizing gestures, reminiscent of a raised hand with a closed fist. The robotic can acknowledge the gesture utilizing its on-board digital camera and skeletal monitoring algorithms. As soon as the human has proven the messenger robotic the place the package deal is, it conveys this info to the dealing with robotic.

This entails positioning itself in entrance of the dealing with robotic and tracing a selected form on the bottom. The orientation of the form signifies the required path of journey, whereas the size of time it takes to hint it signifies the gap. This robotic dance would make a employee bee proud, however did it work?

The researchers put it to the check utilizing a pc simulation, and with actual robots and human volunteers. The robots interpreted the gestures accurately 90% and 93.3% of the time, respectively, highlighting the potential of the method.

“This system could possibly be helpful in locations the place communication community protection is inadequate and intermittent, reminiscent of robotic search-and-rescue operations in catastrophe zones or in robots that undertake house walks,” stated Prof Abhra Roy Chowdhury of the Indian Institute of Science, senior writer on the examine. “This methodology depends upon robotic imaginative and prescient by means of a easy digital camera, and subsequently it’s suitable with robots of varied sizes and configurations and is scalable,” added Kaustubh Joshi of the College of Maryland, first writer on the examine.


Video credit score: Ok Joshi and AR Chowdury


This text was initially printed on the Frontiers weblog.

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