Smart and Modular
This article discusses the advantages of a modular robot that can reassemble itself for different tasks. Modular robots are composed of multiple, linked modules. Although individual modules can move on their own, the greatest advantage of modular systems is their structural reconfigurability. Modules can be combined and assembled to form configurations for specific tasks and then reassembled to suit other tasks. Modular robotic systems are also very well suited for dynamic and unpredictable application areas such as search and rescue operations. Modular robots can be reconfigured to suit various situations. Quite a number of modular robotic system prototypes have been developed and studied in the past, each containing unique geometries and capabilities. In some systems, a module only has one degree of freedom. In order to exhibit practical functionality, multiple interconnected modules are required. Other modular robotic systems use more complicated modules with two or three degrees of freedom. However, in most of these systems, a single module is incapable of certain fundamental locomotive behaviors, such as turning.