This Robot Looks Like a Cyberpunk Caterpillar

Humanoid robots are the hot thing at the moment and venture capitalists are frothing over demos of those robots doing karate or whatever. But while humanoid robots do make sense for many situations, they’re kind of boring. So, I’m dropping something more intriguing into your news feed: this crazy robot that looks like some kind of cyberpunk caterpillar.

This is Porcospino Flex and it was created by Nodehi et al at the University of Genoa. The white paper has a bunch of fancy language describing how such a robot could prove useful across many industries. But let’s be real; nobody cares about any of that and we’re just here because the thing looks wild. It’s bristling with spines and brings to mind some kind of oversized alien parasite.

The paper literally says that a porcupine and a millipede were sources of inspiration for the design.

That strange appearance is all in service of its function, which is crawling around in the mud. Think of it like a big 3D-printed tank track with long studs for traction. To turn, it tightens cables that cause one side to contract and the whole body to curve.

Porcospino Flex runs under the control of a Raspberry Pi 4 Model B single-board computer, which drives the tank track and steering cable winches with Micromotors RH158 brushed gearmotors.

In theory, this robot should be good at navigating through tight spaces. That could make it ideal for tasks like inspecting sewage pipes. It is also pretty good at traversing uneven terrain, so it might be suitable for search and rescue operations in collapsed buildings or mines.

But my suspicion is that Nodehi et al. just wanted an excuse to make a robot that looks like a caterpillar from an android’s nightmares.