NASA would like to have robots that could be modular and, depending on the tasks and the change of environment, samosobiratsya in various designs. In dreams, robots for NASA to have a fully self-assembly of the space station, thereby eliminating the need for expensive, time-consuming work of astronauts.

During one of the project were built 20 robotic modules, which together are called – Superbot. Until now Superbot managed to form a combination with two, four or six legs, move like a snake and a caterpillar. The robot can make a self-repair and self-assembly, because each module is an autonomous robot, as well as each module can engage in “negotiations” with other modules using infrared and radio communications. These modules constantly assess the situation, see what other units nearby, and how they should dock in the system Superbot.

Wei-Min Shen (Wei-Min Shen) of the research team at the University of Pennsylvania (University of Pennsylvania), notes: “One of our demonstration is, for example, that you can have a robot and cut in half, so that it becomes in two independent snakes.

Note that the development continues in the first place in the field of artificial intelligence (AI), ie Superbot can act as a completely autonomous and make decisions about their own actions, its own form. Shen in his laboratory has put forward the idea of “digital hormones (digital hormones)”, which will simulate the body and behavior of the robot, similar to the hormones affect the mind and the human body.

Several U.S. military branches and government agencies other than NASA also expressed interest in the idea of modifying the form of the robot and self-repairing robots. Team received funding from the military research DARPA, the Air Force and U.S. National Science Foundation.