The Defense Department is looking for help in developing robots that are more energy-efficient than the ones being created now. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) put a call out this week for proposals to improve the power efficiency of current robots by 2,000 percent.
The effort, known as Maximum Mobility and Manipulation (M3), will be part of the agency's annual DARPA Robotics Challenge (DRC), aiming to demonstrate M3-developed technology at the 2014 DRC.
The agency pointed to robots capable of carrying hundreds of pounds of equipment across wooded or rocky terrain, drive into an industrial disaster area and shut off a leak, or other such difficult tasks. There are robots currently used in such situations today, but they typically only last 10 to 20 minutes, which greatly limits their potential.
"Humans and animals have evolved to consume energy very efficiently for movement. Bones, muscles and tendons work together for propulsion using as little energy as possible," explained DARPA. "If robotic actuation can be made to approach the efficiency of human and animal actuation, the range of practical robotic applications will greatly increase and robot design will be less limited by power plant considerations."
M3 will be broken down into two tracks: track one will develop robots that could be demonstrated at the DRC, while track two will concentrate on more experimental alternatives. Track one projects will get up to $5 million in funding, while track two projects will receive up to $1 million. The agency said it expects to fund several projects. "Smaller efforts are also encouraged," said DARPA.
"By exploring multiple aspects of robot design, capabilities, control and production, we hope to converge on an adaptable core of robot technologies that can be applied across mission areas," said Gil Pratt, a DARPA program manager who will be organizing M3. "Success in the M3 Actuation effort would benefit not just robotics programs, but all engineered, actuated systems, including advanced prosthetic limbs."
The agency said it will likely need input from a "broad array of scientific and engineering specialties." Those interested in applying can find details on FBO.gov.
