Robotic Camera Imitates Human Eye Muscles
Researchers at Georgia Tech have created with a muscle-like device letting robo-cameras mimic the independent movement of a human eye. Dr. Jun Ueda and lead researcher Joshua Schultz have found a way around the slow and loud motors used in most present robotic cameras by using electric pulses to move muscle-like components. The implications include more efficient and safer MRI-guided surgery, robotic rehabilitation for eye damage, as well as military and surveillance uses. Schultz says the technology could be on the market in a year if one of the potential partners were to commit, though itâd likely get smaller for the commercial applications. âThe fine degree of control of the camera is impressive on its own, but the potentially greater impact is the demonstration of this muscle-like actuator as a general driving force,â one of the engineers in the field and MIT researcher Devin Neal says. âSuch applications may be directly related to the eye such as shutter control like an eyelid, or optical zoom.â Next goal is getting the muscle-like system incorporated into functioning robots.
Via: wired.com
