The term "drone" usually refers to a robotic plane, but some robot researchers are developing underwater drones for exploring the oceans and going to some hard-to-reach underwater destinations. A few of these robotic fish projects also mimic real fish locomotion and appearance, so that the robots blend into their environment. Maybe someday these fake fish will replace the real ones in aquariums, and no one will notice....

• Get your own open source underwater robot capable of diving down to 100 meter depths for just $775 on Kickstarter. OpenROV runs on eight C batteries and runs for about an hour at 1m/s. [url]
• A fish-like robot inspired by notemigonus crysoleucas (a species of the Golden shiner) has been accepted into schools of the real fish. The creators of this robot envision the possibility of using remote-controlled fish robots to steer real schools of fish away from pollution (or maybe directly into fishing nets). [url]
• An ocean-going drone could help clean up the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. The Marine Drone is a concept design for an autonomous robot that can collect plastic debris and other garbage floating around in the oceans. [url]
• The SHOAL project has developed a robotic fish that can detect pollution and monitor water quality. These autonomous robots can work together to cover a square kilometer area to a depth of 30 meters, running on rechargeable batteries that last about 8 hours, and the prototype robots cost about $32,000 each. [url]

If you'd like to read more awesome and interesting stuff, check out this unrelated (but not entirely random!) Techdirt post.

Biomimicry for robot design is a fascinating area of research, and all kinds of interesting robots are being developed that almost look like natural creatures. Here are just a few more examples of machines that are adopting biologically-inspired features.

• Robot researchers in Switzerland are copying the physiology of bats, grasshoppers and locusts to create robots that are more efficient at moving around. Swarms of these kinds of robots are going to be pretty scary looking... [url]
• Lockheed Martin is developing an unmanned aircraft called the Samarai and looks like a foot-long maple seed -- with propellers attached. These remote-controlled aircraft can hover in place and come equipped with video cameras for surveillance missions. [url]
• The exoskeleton of an African desert scorpion isn't smooth, but covered with microscopic bumps that protect it from sandblasting winds. This discovery could help helicopters fly in the desert for longer periods of time, since adding some grooves to smooth steel surfaces can reduce erosion by up to 20%. [url]
• To discover more interesting robotics-related content, check out what's currently floating around the StumbleUpon universe. [url]  

By the way, StumbleUpon can recommend some good Techdirt articles, too.

Robot locomotion doesn't seem very natural so far -- and there's almost an "uncanny valley" for how some robots move that make them look undead. But it won't be long before robots are moving more fluidly. Here are just a few projects that are developing machines that can move like animals and people.

• Low-pressure air pumps can power "soft robots" that mimic the locomotion of invertebrates like starfish and squid. Watch them wiggle. See them jiggle. [url]
• The RoboBee is communicating with bees in their own "waggle dance" language. This robot bee isn't quite fluent yet, but it can almost give directions to real bees -- and it doesn't get attacked as an intruder to the hive. [url]
• The University of Michigan's MABEL biped robot can run a little over 6 mph -- beating Toyota's walking robot and ASIMO by a pretty good margin. MABEL will probably catch up to human marathon runners soon, but it isn't a wireless robot yet... [url]
• To discover more interesting robotics-related content, check out what's currently floating around the StumbleUpon universe. [url]  

By the way, StumbleUpon can recommend some good Techdirt articles, too.

Previously, we saw some bio-inspired robots that could fly around. But walking can be even more challenging if the terrain is rough enough. Here are a few more robots that have been designed to run around on the ground.

• Some researchers are looking at invertebrates as a model for robot locomotion. Worms, crabs, lobsters, insects and arachnids are all being studied to re-create the rhythmic nerve impulses that could produce autonomous robots that can explore unfamiliar terrain autonomously. [url]
• Another hexapod robot named HECTOR mimics the body of a stick insect. Yikes. More creepy spider-like robots are on the way. [url]
• Boston Dynamics is working on a robot called Cheetah that will eventually be able to run as fast (or faster) than the actual animal. DARPA is funding this project to create bots that can outrun humans. [url]
• To discover more interesting robot-related content, check out what's currently floating around the StumbleUpon universe. [url]  

By the way, StumbleUpon can recommend some good Techdirt articles, too.

Humanoid robots are pretty cool, but robot designers are also looking at other kinds of animals that would make for useful robotic mechanisms. By mimicking nature, engineers might also learn how to make robots move more efficiently. Here are just some examples where biology inspired specific robotic designs.

• The robotics firm, Festo, created a robotic bird that seems to fly very naturally. This SmartBird can autonomously launch, fly and land... but it doesn't respond to breadcrumbs thrown on the ground. [url]
• The Festo AirJelly is a wacky-looking robot that looks like a jellyfish in the air. A solar-powered AirJelly that could stay aloft indefinitely would be really cool -- especially if it could also act as a wireless communications tower. [url]
• Mimicking certain crickets, robots from Australia shoot doughnut-shaped vortices of air at each other. The crickets use these puffs of air for silent, covert communications... don't know why robots wouldn't just use encrypted radio transmissions. [url]
• To discover more interesting robotics-related content, check out what's currently floating around the StumbleUpon universe. [url]  

By the way, StumbleUpon can recommend some good Techdirt articles, too.