What is FiloBot?

About FiloBot

• It is different from conventional climbing robots as it doesn’t depend on pre-programmed movements.
• It instead absorbs 3D printing filament through its head and extends its length over time, just like a creeper.
• The team utilised a combination of plant behaviours like phototropism, negative phototropism and gravitropism and utilises these naturally occurring behaviours in high-tech robots.
• The tests for FiloBot have been successful and displayed remarkable adaptability that adjusts its growth trajectory dynamically in response to moving light intensity.
• Significance
  • By equipping autonomous systems with transportable additive manufacturing techniques merged with bioinspired behavioural strategies, future robots can navigate unstructured and dynamic environments and even be capable of self-building infrastructure.
  • This new innovation has opened a new potential impact of technology that can be applied in robotics, where adaptability and responsiveness redefine the capabilities of climbing robots.
• Other similar innovations
  • A similar snake-like robot was unveiled by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), which was specifically crafted to work on rough terrains of our solar system’s planets and moons. 
  • The robot named Exobiology Extant Life Surveyor (EELS 1.0) is engineered to navigate diverse landscapes, including ice, sand, cliff walls, deep craters and lava tubes. 

Q1) What is Phototropism?

It is the ability of the plant to re-orient the shoot growth towards a direction of light source. Phototropism is important to plants as it enhances the ability of plants to optimize their photosynthetic capacity. 

Source: FiloBot, a plant-inspired robot that shoots up like a vine plant