A swarm of robots could be used in search and rescue situations, surveillance and reconnaissance and environmental monitoring.
The Biomachines Lab, an associated research lab of the Institute of Telecommunications, University Institute of Lisbon (ISCTE-IUL) and University of Lisbon, built ten robotic boats to test collective intelligence behaviour of robots in real world environments. These boats cost around 300€ each and are built using CNC mills and 3D printers.
These robotic boats can collectively follow this behaviours:
- Homing
- Clustering
- Dispersion
- Area Monitoring
A combination of these behaviours was tested to monitor the water temperature in an area. First, the robots start at the base at the same time and collectively drive to the predefined area. Once arrived, they will disperse and start monitoring without leaving the area. When finished, the robots cluster and head back for their base.
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