NASA Developing Super Ball Bot
Posted on July 26, 2015
NASA is developing a Super Ball Bot. The collapsible robot would be an all-in-one landing and mobility platform based on tensegrity toy. The idea could lead to lower-cost missions. Hundreds of the robots weighing only a few kilograms each could be collapsed and stored on a spacecraft and then unpacked when arriving at the destination.
NASA says the Super Ball Bot could withstand drops from great heights, such as a drop from a spacecraft high above the surface of a planet. It could survive thanks to its sphere-like matrix of cables and joints. The robot would hit the ground with a bounce. The joints could be adjusted to roll the bot in any direction. A data collecting device would be located within the core of the bot.
NASA says a good mission for Super Ball Bot could be the surface of Saturn's moon Titan. Titan has a soft surface. It also has lakes of liquid methane that would not be suitable for a traditional rover that might sink down and get stuck.
A research paper about tensegrity-based probes describes several benefits such as light-weight, easy to store, energy efficient and capable of unique modes of locomotion. NASA shared this video that shows some of the robot's travel methods. It shows the unusual looking robot falling to the ground, rolling and climbing up and down hills. Take a look: