UK company develops snake-arm robot

England-based OC Robotics has created a snake-arm robot which is very flexible and also fully controllable. The United States Department of Defense (DOD) will be testing the device in small and unusual areas in order to see if it will be of use to them. The creators claim that it can be controlled very precisely and could prove to be very useful for investigations.

The snake-arm is 24 inches long and consists of a “backbone” which is broken into segments by little wires. This allows a user to control each of the wired segments via joystick, meaning it can be bent in several locations so that it can be twisted to fit where ever it is needed. The wires are also able to shift in length as a motor pulls on them to control each wires’ length individually. The software is able to take the desired shape and configure each wire to the right length in order to fit it.

The company believes that the invention will be useful in a wide array of fields including aerospace assembly, nuclear inspection, and even certain types of surgery. The technology is very easily manipulated which allows people to use the arms in a variety of ways. The company even claims that it can be used as a steerable hose pipe or vacuum cleaner, although the price will probably be too high for people to buy it for their households. Currently only the 24-inch arm pictured to the right has been shown, but the company says they are currently working on arms of different lengths.