Row-bot: An energetically autonomous artificial water boatman

Ieropoulos, Ioannis

Abstract

© 2015 IEEE. We present a design for an energetically autonomous artificial organism, combining two subsystems; a bio-inspired energy source and bio-inspired actuation. The work is the first demonstration of energetically autonomy in a microbial fuel cell (MFC)-powered, swimming robot taking energy from it's surrounding, aqueous environment. In contrast to previous work using stacked MFC power sources, the Row-bot employs a single microbial fuel cell as an artificial stomach and uses commercially available voltage step-up hardware to produce usable voltages. The energy generated exceeds the energy requirement to complete the mechanical actuation needed to refuel. Energy production and actuation are demonstrated separately with the results showing that the combination of these subsystems will produce closed-loop energetic autonomy. The work shows a crucial step in the development of autonomous robots capable of long term self-power. Bio-inspiration for the design of the Row-bot was taken from the water boatman beetle. This proof of concept study opens many avenues for the further development of the subsystems comprising the Row-bot, and the functionality of the robot itself.

Citation

Philamore, H., Rossiter, J., Stinchcombe, A., & Ieropoulos, I. (2015). Row-bot: An energetically autonomous artificial water boatman. Proceedings of the ... IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems. IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems, 3888-3893. https://doi.org/10.1109/IROS.2015.7353924

• Journal Article Type: Conference Paper
• Conference Name: 2015 IEEE/RJS International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems (IROS)
• Conference Location: Hamburg, Germany
• Acceptance Date: Jan 1, 2015
• Online Publication Date: Dec 17, 2015
• Publication Date: Dec 17, 2015
• Deposit Date: Nov 13, 2020
• Journal: IEEE International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems
• Print ISSN: 2153-0858
• Electronic ISSN: 2153-0866
• Peer Reviewed: Not Peer Reviewed
• Pages: 3888-3893
• ISBN: 9781479999941
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1109/IROS.2015.7353924
• Keywords: Robot sensing systems, DC motors, Stomach, Propulsion, Mobile robots, Capacitors
• Public URL: https://uwe-repository.worktribe.com/output/6804483