WIRED Staff
Science

Slideshow: Mutating Bots May Save Lives

Several research teams are developing robots made of smart building blocks that can morph into different forms to perform a broad variety of tasks. The bots are to be used in space missions and in search-and-rescue efforts. By Lakshmi Sandhana.
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Sensor payloads are as important as the robots themselves. Here, a miniature infrared camera is being evaluated.Courtesy of the Center for Robot-Assisted Search and Rescue at the University of Florida

See related story: Mutating Bots May Save Lives

The Atron robot can automatically change shape.

The Atron robot can automatically change shape.

Courtesy of the University of Southern Denmark
This robotic centipede is a modular robot being developed by Mark Yim.

This robotic centipede is a modular robot being developed by Mark Yim.

Courtesy of PARC
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Unmanned aerial vehicles, or UAVs, can join ground robots in search-and-rescue missions. UAVs give responders a bird's-eye view of damage and access to multistory disasters.

Courtesy of the Center for Robot-Assisted Search and Rescue at the University of Florida